ANGOLAN rebel group Unita said on Tuesday that it has freed five Russian pilots captured in Angola. In a statement released in Lisbon, Unita said the pilots were freed on February 5 in response to appeals from family members and diplomats. Unita said the pilots had been handed over on May 22 to authorities in neighbouring Zambia who have guaranteed their safe passage back to Russia. Unita gave no reason for the capture, but said that Angola has been at war since December 1998, which it blames on the Angolan government.
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