/ 27 August 2000

NAMIBIANS ARREST SPIES, TORTURE VILLAGERS

NAMIBIAN security forces have arrested 33 Angolans suspected of being agents of the rebel Unita movement since the beginning of the year, says Namibian Police Chief Inspector Moses Hawanga. The arrests took place in a series of security ”clean-up” operations in the Kavango region near the Angolan border where police claim more than 50 civilians have been killed in Unita attacks. His announcement was tempered by reports which suggested that Namibian soldiers allegedly tortured villagers in the Kavango border region, in retaliation for the death of one of their officers. The NDF refused to comment on the killing and torture, saying that it had not received a report. Namibia last year gave the Angolan army permission to stage attacks on Unita from Namibian soil. – Reuters