More suspected Angolan soldiers detained

Ten more suspected Angolan government soldiers have been detained in Zambia’s Northwestern province after 12 were detained at the weekend, news reports said on Wednesday. The reports said the soldiers who had crossed from Angola to search for food in Zambian villages had been disarmed and detained.

District administrator Chris Kwalombota told the ‘Daily Mail’ that the soldiers were being kept in Zambezi “pending instructions from higher authorities”. Meanwhile a Zambian foreign ministry official was quoted as saying that Luanda had already been informed of the development. “We have already communicated with the authorities in Angola through their embassy here,” the official said. According to AFP, the Angolan embassy in Lusaka confirmed receiving reports of the detentions but declined to give details, citing an agreement between the two countries not to discuss such matters in the media.