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Civilians flee after UNITA attack

    JOHANNESBURG

    Thousands of civilians are reported to have fled Caxito, about 80 km north of the capital Luanda, after Saturday’s attack by suspected UNITA rebels, the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a situation report on Wednesday.

    “Tens of thousands are reported to have fled the area in the direction of Luanda. Government officials, UN agencies and NGOs are working closely to monitor the situation,” OCHA said. “These include approximately 25,000 displaced persons from the Cambambe II IDP camp in Porto Quipiri, nine km east of Caxito. Many took temporary refuge in Kifangondo 40 km from Caxito.”

    OCHA said that reports from Caxito indicated that some people had returned to the city. “As of Tuesday afternoon, approximately 380 families the majority of whom are IDPs from Cambambe II, remained in Kifangondo,” it added. News reports on Thursday quoted government officials as saying that an estimated 30,000 had fled Caxito for Luanda.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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