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Mozambique: Palma and Mocimboa da Praia cut off – By Joseph Hanlon
7:04 CAT | 19 Sep 2020
Image: News reports & clippings
Insurgents have cut off land access to Mocimboa da Praia and Palma and are limiting sea travel. Mocimboa da Praia and the N380 road toward Mueda and Pemba has been controlled by insurgents since 12 August. Three villages on the road from Mocimboa da Praia to Palma were attacked on 10 September; there was fighting with government forces but that road remains closed. This left only a very circuitous dirt road from Montepuez to Mueda and then via Nangade and Pundanhar to Palma, which was attacked on 11 and 12 September near Pundanhar, closing the road and cutting all road access.
On 2, 8, 9 and 11 September insurgents attacked three islands close to the coast between Palma and Mocimboa: Metundo, Quifuqui, and Vamizi. The luxury resort on Vamizi, already closed due to Covid-19, was sacked and partly burned, and 1 person was killed.. All three islands have many refugees, who were told by insurgents to go back to the mainland. The islands are 10-20 km off the coast and it appears that the insurgents want to control marine traffic between the Quirimbas islands and the coast and block sea access to Mocimboa da Praia. In keeping with this, insurgents in the past two weeks have attacked 8 villages near the coast in Macomia, Mocimboa da Praia, and Palma districts. with 6 deaths and many houses burned. And there has been an attack on a coastal village near the Afungi peninsula, where the multi-billion dollar gas liquification trains are being built.
Meanwhile the military continues to try to move to Mocimboa and there has been heavy fighting at Awasse and Manilha on the road from Mueda to Mocimboa. It is unclear if either side now controls the road. But insurgents continue to hold Mocimboa itself, which is largely destroyed and looted, as well as the port.
By Joseph Hanlon
Source: News reports & clippings
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