UNITA shells Kuito

After two days of heavy fighting with government forces UNITA rebels on Wednesday blasted the besieged central highlands town of Kuito with artillery fire.

According to independent sources and a report on Angolan state radio, the shelling started on Tuesday night after UNITA tightened its siege of the Bie Province capital, which lies 180 km northwest of Huambo, Angola’s second city.

“Jonas Savimbi (the UNITA leader) and his gang of malefactors have once again caused grief among the martyred residents of Kuito,” the radio said, adding: “Angolan Armed Forces and national Police units backed by Kuito residents are planning to react to the gang of malefactors.”

It quoted an authorised military source as telling Radio Nacional de Angola that the attacks have been possible because “Jonas Savimbi’s gang has been receiving aid from European and African countries which systematically violate UN Security Council resolutions.” The radio report gave no casualty figures.

Earlier, sources in the Angolan capital, Luanda, told IRIN they believed that two strategic towns outside Kuito, Cunhinga, 30 km to the northwest, and Chipeta, 20 km northeast of Kuito had been captured by UNITA after heavy fighting thus enabling it to start shelling the town.

Until the latest fighting, Kuito had been sheltering an estimated 35,000 internally displaced people. UN sources said they believed this number was now likely to have doubled, but because humanitarian staff had been temporarily withdrawn it had not been possible as yet to obtain accurate figures.