23 football fans die in Angola bus crash

LUANDA - Agence France-Presse

An Angola fan holds up a scarf during their match against Sudan at the African Nations Cup soccer match in Malabo January 26, 2012. REUTERS photo

Twenty-three supporters of an Angolan premier league football team died and 29 others were injured when their speeding bus crashed after a game, state media reported Monday.

The bus carrying 70 Kabuscorp fans crashed in the southern province Kwanza-Sul around 600 kilometres (370 miles) from the capital Luanda on Saturday night, according to the Jornal de Angola.
 
Their team had been beaten 2-0 by hosts Libolo in the national championship.
 
The victims were employed by a security company hired by Kabuscorp.
 
Based in Luanda, the club belongs to Angolan entrepreneur Bento Kangamba, who has links with the ruling MPLA party.
 
President Jose Eduardo dos Santos expressed "deep sadness" at the accident, in a statement.
 
Road accidents are the second-highest cause of death in the oil-rich southern African nation after malaria. In May last year, 42 opposition Unita party supporters died in an accident in the same area.