Lusaka (dpa) - The number of Angolan refugees entering Zambia since October has reached 11,000 following the arrival of another 4,000 on Monday, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said Tuesday.
Confirming the latest arrivals of refugees in western Zambia's Kalabo district, government spokesman Paul Mukoma said thousands more refugees were expected in the next few days as the fighting between Angolan govenrment forces and UNITA rebels in the Moxico province rages on.
Mukoma said the refugees were weak because of a lack of food, adding that thousands were daily being transferred to the Mayukwaukwa refugee settlement in the Lukulu district.
He said according to some of the refugees, UNITA rebels have resorted to guerilla warfare tactics in the region and offered unexpected resistance to the government forces' heavy artillery bombardment.
Mukoma said the 241 Angolan government soldiers who fled to Zambia last week have been transferred from Kalabo to western Zambia's capital of Mongu. dpa dl vc
AP-NY-12-14-99 0638EST
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