Gunmen attack Togo soccer team

The Africa Cup of Nations got off to the worst possible start today when unidentified gunmen attacked the Togolese team bus, wounding several players and reportedly killing the driver.

The government in Angola, where the tournament had been due to kick off tomorrow, denounced what it called an "act of terrorism". Speaking after the attack, Togo player Thomas Dossevi described a terrifying ordeal as heavily armed assailants fired automatic weapons at the bus.

"We were machine-gunned, even though we had two coaches of police escorting us," he said. The midfielder, who plays his club football with Nantes in France, said that goalkeeper Kodjovi ObilalE and defender Serge Akakpo were among those injured.

"I'm all right but some of the players are in a bad state. It's madness, they shot at us like dogs for 20 minutes, he said. "They were wearing balaclavas and were armed to the teeth... It's horrible, we had security guards but it was not enough."

The team was travelling from its training base in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo to the north Angolan enclave of Cabinda when it was attacked. Togo had been due to play their first match on Monday against Ghana but it was not clear last night if the game would go ahead.

Mr Dossevi said that the group had just passed through immigration control into Angola when the shooting started and the place was turned into a "war" zone. "Players received bullets in the abdomen and the driver was hit," he added. "We don't want to play at the Africa Nations. Our thoughts are with our friends, the injured players."

The midfielder said that his teammate Mr Akakpo "took a bullet in the back" and that goalkeeper ObilalE was "bleeding a lot". An official from the sports ministry in the Togolese capital, Lome, said the team's Angolan driver had been "killed on the spot".

The enclave of Cabinda, separated from the rest of Angola by a sliver of DR Congo, has been blighted by three decades of fighting between a separatist group and the government.

Antonio Bento Bembe, Angola's minister without portfolio who is in charge of Cabinda affairs, said an investigation into the shooting had been launched. "This was an act of terrorism that is being dealt with as we speak," he said.

There have been serious doubts about the wisdom of staging Africa's top football tournament in Angola, which is still recovering from decades of civil war. The vast, oil-rich central African nation was seeking to use the tournament to showcase its new-found wealth and status after overtaking Nigeria as the continent's leading oil producer. But even before last night's attack, preparations had been hit by delays and a chronic lack of infrastructure.

Cabinda, sandwiched between the two Congo states (see map, left), is Angola's main oil-producing region. Human rights groups have accused the military of a string of atrocities in the enclave and claim government officials have embezzled millions. The government has denied the charges.

The attack will also add to pressure on the World Cup host, South Africa, which is spending heavily to ensure security ahead of the tournament in June. However, sub-Saharan Africa's largest economy has incomparably better infrastructure than its war- devastated near neighbour to the north.

Gabriel Amayu, the vice-president of Togo's football association, said that as many as five players had been seriously injured in the attack, but that the hospital had not yet confirmed the exact number.

Many of Togo's players ply their trade in the French league but the two footballers who play in England, Manchester City's Adebayor and Aston Villa's Mustapha Salifou, were both unhurt.

"Club officials have spoken with Adebayor and though shaken by the terrible events, he is unharmed," Manchester City said in a statement.

Before leaving for the tournament, Adebayor was asked whether he had any reservations about playing in Cabinda. "We were born in Africa so we know what it's about. Some people might be afraid, which is normal, I can understand that. But I'm going back to Africa, to one of the countries on my continent, and I'm prepared for Cabinda. I will enjoy myself," he said.

- INDEPENDENT