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"Bandit" attacks along Namibia's northern border have stopped since the signing of Angola's ceasefire agreement, but the ministry of defence has advised people in the Caprivi region to continue travelling under military escort and avoid journeying by night.
A spokesperson said that although the situation in the Caprivi was "back to normal" following the April agreement between the Angolan government and UNITA rebels, the military convoys had not been suspended.
Travelling independently by day was "probably not a problem", the spokesperson said. However, "that doesn't say the bandits have refrained from attacks for ever. But, as of now, no serious incidents have been reported".
She added that although Namibian troops in southern Angola, deployed to block UNITA infiltration, had been withdrawn, tight security would be maintained along the border. "We are of course watching the situation very closely," she told IRIN.
The Namibian newspaper on Monday reported a "partial" suspension of the military convoys in Caprivi. They were introduced in 2000 after attacks - officially blamed on UNITA - on vehicles travelling between Bagani, 200 km east of Rundu and Kongola, 117 km west of Katima Mulilo.
However, the military commander for both the Caprivi and Kavango regions, Lt-Col Abed Mukumangeni, was quoted as denying that the convoys had been discontinued.
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
