diff --git a/NEWS b/NEWS
index 2944196c..d3fc5ed7 100644
--- a/NEWS
+++ b/NEWS
@@ -1,4 +1,9 @@
-xbps-0.21 (???):
+xbps-0.22 (???):
+
+ * When checking for obsolete files in upgrades, ignore unexistent files in
+   current package; this was hitting an assertion due to this.
+
+xbps-0.21 (2013-03-11):
 
  * libxbps: improved code to find obsolete pkg files in upgrades. Now the code
    compares the whole file list between current and new package. A test has been
diff --git a/lib/package_find_obsoletes.c b/lib/package_find_obsoletes.c
index 874b1379..51d6ddb4 100644
--- a/lib/package_find_obsoletes.c
+++ b/lib/package_find_obsoletes.c
@@ -104,8 +104,10 @@ xbps_find_pkg_obsoletes(struct xbps_handle *xhp,
 	for (i = 0; i < prop_array_count(instfiles); i++) {
 		found = false;
 		obj = prop_array_get(instfiles, i);
-		assert(prop_object_type(obj) == PROP_TYPE_DICTIONARY);
-
+		if (prop_object_type(obj) != PROP_TYPE_DICTIONARY) {
+			/* ignore unexistent files */
+			continue;
+		}
 		oldstr = prop_dictionary_get(obj, "file");
 		if (oldstr == NULL)
 			continue;