Cabinda separatists attacked a military vehicle tasked with guarding Chinese miners in northern Angola this week, resulting in the deaths of between two and 12 people, government and separatist sources said Friday.
"Unidentified elements on Monday attacked an Angolan military vehicle responsible for the security of Chinese workers, between two villages in the northern province of Cabinda, near the border with Congo-Brazzaville.
"Two Angolans were killed: a soldier and a driver," Secretary of State for Human Rights Antonio Bento Bembe told AFP.
The Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda-Armed Forces of Cabinda (Flec-Fac) claimed responsibility for Monday's attack, which occurred three days before the country celebrated 35 years of independence.
"This attack killed 12 people…who were all members of the Angolan army, except for the driver of the vehicle," Nhemba Pirilampo of Flec-Fac, told AFP via telephone.
The Cabinda prosecutor, Antonio Nito, confirmed to AFP that fatalities had occurred in the attack, but did not give a precise number.
According to both separatists and the government, Chinese workers are protected by Angolan military convoys while prospecting for oil in Cabinda.
The tiny oil-rich province, which is separated from Angola by the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been troubled by separatist violence for more than 30 years.
In January 2010, Flec-Fac and another separatist faction, Flec-PM, claimed responsibility for attacking a bus carrying the Togolese national football club to an Africa Cup of Nations match, which resulted in two deaths.
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