The Defense Ministry claimed 229 Contra rebels and 90 soldiers loyal to the leftist Sandinista government were killed in 4,801 combat engagements in February. A statement issued Monday night said 39 civilians also were killed, 55 injured and 115 kidnapped during the period. The statement said U.S. Air Force planes violated Nicaraguan airspace 13 times. It said other planes, mostly leaving Honduras to resupply the Contra rebels, were detected 35 times in February. The Contra rebels, trained and supplied by the United States, have been fighting to oust the Sandinistas since November 1981.
