S.A. troops scour Natal for guerrilla group

Press, 21 February 1980, Page 7

S.A. troops scour Natal for guerrilla group

NZPA-Reutef JohannesburgSouth African troops have moved into northern Natal province, apparently serching for heavily armed guerrillas who burned down a store in northern iululand last week-end.

At the request pf he police, units of thidefence force took contro of the area in norther Natal where the latest tforist incident occurred <d where certain arms ca<es were found,” a defect force spokesman told Riters. He would no] say how manv troops weriinvolved. The store vs burned down on SaturcY morning bv about 10 gue'dlas armed w’ith a rocket iuncher and Soviet-made AJ7 rifles. A few days earlij the police had discoveredin the same area a hiddl stock . of weapons art explosives which a said was

3 big enough “to start a small 2 war.” ' Natal province borders on ' the southern tip of Mozam--1 bique where members of the - banned African National 3 Congress movement are > based. j Black guerrillas fighting against the Government’s r apartheid policies have stepped up their activities 1 recently, and Brigadier ; Charles Lloyd, the police I commander in Natal, said 1 this week that South Africans must prepare for • more attacks “before it is > too late.” The attack on the store was carried out by men wearing olive green uni-

forms and the South African Broadcasting Company: quoted a defence force spokesman tonight as saying! it was probably a joint operation of the A.N.C. and Frelimo, the Mozambique army, | A police statement after the attack said ammunition and a Frelimo beret had been found near the store. Jt was the second big urban-guerrilla action in South Africa this year. Last month three guerrillas seized a bank in a suburb of the capital city of Pretoria. They and two of their hostages were killed as the police stormed the building to break the siege. The South African Gov- !

I ernment yesterday sent a strongly worded Note to | Mozambique warning that it (reserved the right to take whatever steps necessary, wherever and whenever, to [protect South African life and property. The Note said South Africa rejected Mozambique assurances that it was not harbouring guerrillas. “The South African Government holds the Government of Mozambique fully responsible for the presence of these terrorists on its territory, and for their actions which are indisputably in breach of international law, it said.