LAGOS Nigeria AP A special military commando force established to fight violent crime in Nigeria's commercial capital of Lagos has been pulled off the city streets following the shooting deaths of three men last month. Commandos shot and killed three men in Lagos claiming they were armed robbers. The killings however have triggered an outcry against the heavily armed task force. Lagos military administrator Col. Buba Marwa was quoted Tuesday on state radio as saying the move to withdraw the anti-crime force was in response to public opinion. Lagos and much of Nigeria is notorious for violent crime including kidnappings armed robbery and murder. The military's anti-crime commando force won accolades initially for reducing the crime rate particularly the number of armed robberies. But a recent string of shooting deaths blamed on the commando force has soured public opinion. Nigeria's military which has ruled this West African country for much of the time since independence in 1960 is often viewed with suspicion. The current military ruler Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar has been working to put a kinder face on the army's public image and has promised to return power to civilians next year. str/ids/tjs APW19981201.0032.txt.body.html APW19981201.1234.txt.body.html