/ 12 January 1999

ZIM PLANE DOWN IN DRC

FIVE Zimbabwean troops deployed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were killed when an air force plane crashed on the outskirts of Kinshasa, Zimbabwean defence authorities announced on Monday.”[The] Ministry of Defence regrets to announce that a ZDF (Zimbabwe Defence Forces) CASA 212 transport aircraft crashed a few kilometres outside Kinshasa killing all five on board,” said a ZDF statement.The statement which did not give the date of the crash, said the plane came down due to a “combination of technical problems and poor weather”. Zimbabwe has committed some 10000 troops and equipment to the DRC where it is backing President Laurent Kabila, along with Chad, Angola and Namibia.

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