A resolution adopted unanimously by the 15-nation council called on all sides in Haiti's bloody uprising to cease all violence and authorised the force to help "contribute to a secure and stable environment" for up to three months, after which a follow-up UN stabilisation force would take over.

The United States and France have already ordered troops to the Caribbean nation as part of the international force, and other governments including Canada and Brazil are expected to soon detail their troop contributions, UN diplomats said.

Aristide arrived in the Central African Republic en route to exile in South Africa. Two government ministers were waiting at the international airport in Bangui to receive him.

The president's departure sparked a rampage through the streets of Port-au-Prince by angry pro-Aristige gangs armed with guns and machetes. At least 12 deaths and many more injuries were reported.

Widespread looting targeted warehouses and banks. Some people ran through the streets carrying suitcases of banknotes. But a dusk-till-dawn curfew appeared to be holding with just sporadic firing into the night.

US Marines were arriving in Haiti early yesterday to launch an international force to restore order after the Caribbean nation's president Jean Bertrand Aristide fled a mounting insurrection.

A Marine contingent took up combat positions at Port-au-Prince airport just before the UN Security Council authorised the deployment of a multinational force in Haiti for up to three months.

The council said it acted after receiving an appeal for "the urgent support of the international community to assist in restoring peace and security in Haiti" from Chief Justice Boniface Alexandre, sworn in on Sunday as Haiti's new leader following the resignation of Aristide.

While waiting for the troops to move in, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan counseled Haiti's people "to remain calm, to work with the new president, and to think of their country and their future, not individual ambitions."

"I know some of them may think it (the council action) is a bit late, but it's better late than never and we will do whatever we can to support them," Annan told reporters.

The council had awaited Aristide's departure before acting, despite a plea from Caribbean nations to urgently send in international troops last week.

Initially, US and French troops are to make up the bulk of the force in Haiti, which is several hundred miles from Florida and is the Western Hemisphere's poorest nation.

The first US soldiers began arriving as the council voted and French forces were due in the morning, diplomats said.