Continued insecurity

Angola’s northern town of Uige was shelled last week and two ambush attacks occurred in nearby villages, WFP reported in its latest update. The 10 November shelling, although causing only minor Infrastructural damage, “affected people psychologically, as direct shelling of Uige town has been rare,” the update said. The attack was preceded by ambushes in two nearby villages, Kibianga (17 km) and Kiongwa (5 km), south of Uige. On 7 November, a reported ambush on a village 18 km from Uige town resulted in the temporary closure of the Uige-Negage road. Attacks on villages close to Uige have resulted in limited road access to Songo and Negage, while reported troop movements around villages near Uige resulted in temporary suspension of projects operating in the areas, WFP said. Due to the continued insecurity in the central province of Bie, 2,777 new displaced persons (IDPs) from Cambadua, Chicala, Andulo, Catabola, Cuningha, and Chinguar were verified in Kuito during the reporting week, 8-15 November WFP said. Four mine accidents were reported in Kunje, 7 km from Kuito on 6 and 7 November. A total of 4 persons have been injured. On 6 November, an Angolan army helicopter was reportedly destroyed between Sautar (Malanje) and Cuemba (Bie). Meanwhile, the security situation remains tense in the eastern province of Moxico, particularly in the municipalities along the Zambian border, as well as the provinces of Lunda Sul, Malanje, and Bie. As a result, an influx of 312 new IDPs into the provincial capital Luena from mostly Malanje (107) and within Moxico (174) was reported. This brings to a total of 324 new IDPs arriving in Luena in November, WFP said.