UNHCR: Congolese refugees stream into Zambia

The United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR, says up to three-hundred refugees a day are continuing to cross the border into Zambia from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This follows the seizure -- earlier this month -- of two towns in southern Congo, Pweto and Pepa, by Congolese rebels.

The UNHCR says it has dealt with twenty-four-thousand of the refugees, but tens of thousands more may be camped in local villages just inside the Zambian border.

However, a BBC correspondent on the border says the Zambian government's biggest headache remains the presence of troops loyal to President Laurent Kabila.

Reports say that although some of these have been disarmed, others have refused to surrender their weapons. The Zambian government has put its army on high alert in an effort to increase security in the area.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service