The deputy coach and press officer of the national football team of Togo, the “Sparrowhawks”, died on Saturday morning following the wounds they suffered when they were attacked on their way to the Angolan enclave of Cabinda, where their group was to play its matches for the finals of the 27th Cup of Africa Nations (CAN).
The bus carrying the players of the Togolese national squad was machine-gunned in the Cabinda enclave, Angola, when it crossed the border from Pointe Noire in Congo Brazzaville.
According to several sources, several players and members of the technical committee were injured in the attack, when the vehicle came under gunfire while being escorted by police.
“About 10km just after the border, there was heavy gunfire from the bush by rebels who attacked the two buses at once,” Winny Dogbatse, chairman of the CAN fundraising special commission, told reporters.
He said the players’ bus and the second one carrying the equipment were targeted.
The Angolan driver carrying the luggage of the Togolese team was killed in the attack.
The Togolese team is scheduled to play in Cabinda, in Group B of the African Cup of Nations (CAN) 2010 along with Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana.
They were in camp since 1st January in Pointe Noire and crossed over to Cabinda on Friday.
Source African Press Agency
