DILI, East Timor - The first refugees to be flown back from their haven in West Timor arrived home Friday, touching off an explosion of tearful joy and triumph on the streets of this devastated city.

　Hundreds of people turned out to greet the returnees, cheering with delight as French Army trucks brought them from the airport into the city.

　The first flight had 94 people on board, including nine children. A second plane brought 79 refugees.

　Indonesian authorities say more than 250,000 people crossed into West Timor to escape the militia violence that erupted after the East Timorese voted for independence on Aug. 30.

　The majority of the refugees, now housed in squalid, insecure camps, want to return home.

　The first of the returning refugees were taken to the Dili sports stadium, where hundreds of Dili residents have been living in makeshift shelters while they await reconstruction of their burned-out homes.

　They had been held in refugee camps in West Timor and reportedly intimidated by the same militiamen who devastated Dili and much of East Timor last month.

　''There was much propaganda by the militias,'' Brigada Belo, who was returning with her husband, Manuel, said at the airport.

　''They told us, 'If you go there, we will attack you from here when Interfet leaves,''' she added, referring to the peacekeepers headed by Australia.

　As the refugees arrived, the trucks were mobbed by hundreds of people clamoring to see if they recognized any faces.

　After health checks, the refugees were given rice, cooking utensils and plastic sheeting to help them set up elementary shelters.

　A World Food Program spokeswoman, Abby Spring, said the East Timorese appeared to be in ''reasonable condition'' after a month in the Indonesian-run camps.

　''There are no signs of malnutrition,'' she said.

　The UN High Commissioner for Refugees hopes the airlift on Friday marks the start of an operation that will see tens of thousands of refugees repatriated in the weeks ahead. Most are expected to return by sea or road.

　Before leaving West Timor, the refugees were briefed on what to expect when they got home.

　 (International Herald Tribune)