Great Seal logo Patterns of Global Terrorism: 1999

Africa Overview

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Africa in 1999 witnessed no massive terrorist attacks as devastating as the bombings one year earlier of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, although evidence continued to emerge of terrorist activity and networks--both indigenous and foreign--on the continent. Terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Gama'at al-Islamiyya, and Hizballah posed a threat to US targets and interests throughout Africa and elsewhere. In the region's most deadly attack, Rwandan Hutu rebels murdered two US citizens and a number of tourists in March.

Angola
Insecurity continued to plague Angola in 1999. Angola's main guerrilla faction, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), committed several acts of international terrorism as a tactic in its decades-old insurrection. In January, UNITA guerrillas ambushed a vehicle, killing one British national, one Brazilian, and two Angolan security guards. On 10 February, UNITA rebels reportedly kidnapped two Portuguese and two Spanish nationals. The next day, UNITA rebels attacked the scout vehicle for a convoy of diamond mine vehicles, killing three Angolan security guards and wounding five others. Five Angolan citizens were killed on 14 April when unidentified assailants attacked a Save the Children vehicle in Salina. UNITA's bloodiest terrorist assault was the ambush of a German humanitarian convoy near Bocoio on 6 July. Guerrilla forces killed at least 15 persons and injured 25 others.

In addition to assaults on isolated vehicle convoys, UNITA attacked three civilian aircraft in 1999. On 13 May, UNITA rebels claimed they had shot down a privately owned plane and abducted three Russian crewmembers. UNITA again claimed responsibility for shooting down a private aircraft on 30 June. One of the five Russian crewmembers died when the aircraft crash landed near Capenda-Camulemba. Three weeks later, UNITA rebels fired mortars at an International Committee for the Red Cross aircraft parked at Huambo airport but caused no injuries or damage.

Total Casualties Caused by International Attacks, 1999

Total International Attacks, 1999

Cabinda Liberation Front separatists are believed responsible for the kidnapping in mid-March of one Angolan, two French, and two Portuguese oil workers in the northern enclave of Cabinda. In past years the separatists have taken hostages to earn ransom and to pressure the Angolan Government to relinquish control over the region.

Ethiopia
Ogaden National Liberation Front rebels on 3 April kidnapped a French aid worker, two Ethiopian staff workers, and four Somalis. The next day, the group's "political secretary" announced the French hostage had been "pardoned" and was to be released to French diplomats.

Liberia
Two major kidnapping incidents occurred in Liberia in 1999. On 21 April unidentified assailants crossed the border from Guinea and laid siege to the town of Voinjama, kidnapping the visiting Dutch Ambassador, a Norwegian diplomat, a European Union representative, and 17 aid workers. The attackers, whom eyewitnesses said belonged to the United Liberation Movement for Democracy in Liberia, released all hostages later the same day. In August an armed gang kidnapped four British nationals, one Norwegian citizen, and one Italian national. The gang released them unharmed two days later.

Nigeria
Ethnic violence flared in Nigeria during the year as bloody feuds broke out among various indigenous groups battling for access to and control of limited local resources. Poverty-stricken Nigerians across the nation, particularly in the oil-producing southern regions, demanded a larger share of the nation's oil wealth. Radical ethnic Ijaw youth resorted to violence against oil firms as a means of expressing their grievances. The gangs abducted more than three dozen foreign oil workers, including 16 British nationals and four US citizens. The militant youths demanded ransoms from the victims' employers as well as compensation from the government on behalf of their village, ethnic group, or larger community. In most cases the youths held the hostages for only a few days before releasing them unharmed.

Sierra Leone
Security problems in Sierra Leone spiked during the first half of 1999 as insurgent forces mounted a last-gasp offensive on the capital in January. Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels took captive several foreign missionaries during the RUF's siege of Freetown. The failure of this offensive and a general sense of battle fatigue led guerrilla forces to sign a peace and cease-fire agreement in July, and Sierra Leone remained relatively calm for the remainder of the year. Violent flareups occurred sporadically, however, as the government tried to regain control of the countryside.

The most significant of the post-cease-fire incidents was the kidnapping of more than three dozen foreign nationals at a rebel demobilization and prisoner exchange ceremony. On 4 August members of an Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) faction kidnapped 10 United Nations military observers, 14 regional peacekeepers, and eight civilians. Among the hostages were 14 Nigerian soldiers, seven British nationals, three Zambians, and two US citizens. The AFRC militants demanded the release of their leader, Johnny Paul Koromah, and humanitarian aid. After Koromah assured them that he was not imprisoned in the capital, the AFRC militants released most of hostages the next day and the rest on 10 August.

South Africa
Islamist militants associated with Qibla and People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) continued to conduct bombings and other acts of domestic terror in Cape Town. Only two of the attacks affected foreign interests, when unidentified youths on 8 and 10 January firebombed Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants in Cape Town, causing major damage but no injuries.

Uganda
On 14 February a pipe bomb exploded inside a crowded bar, killing five persons and injuring 35 others. One Ethiopian and four Ugandans died in the blast. Among the injured were two Swiss nationals, one Pakistani, one US citizen, and 27 Ugandans. Ugandan authorities blamed the bombing and a number of other terrorist incidents in the capital on Islamist militants associated with the Allied Democratic Forces based along the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwandan Hutu rebels attacked three tourist camps in the Bwindi National Forest on 1 March, kidnapping 14 tourists, including three US citizens, six British nationals, three New Zealanders, one Australian, and one Canadian. The rebels killed two US citizens, four British nationals, and two New Zealanders before releasing the others the next day. One month later, on 3 April, suspected Rwandan Hutu rebels based in the Democratic Republic of Congo again crossed over into Uganda and attacked a village in Kisoro, killing three persons.

Zambia
At least 16 bombs exploded across Lusaka on 28 February. One bomb exploded inside the Angolan Embassy, killing one person and causing major damage. Other bombs detonated near major water pipes, around powerlines, and in parks and residential districts, injuring two persons. There were no claims of responsibility.

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