Mozambique: Insurgents attack Rwandan patrol in Mocimboa, girl killed

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Mozambique: Insurgents attack Rwandan patrol in Mocimboa, girl killed

12:40 CAT | 02 Sep 2024

Photo: O País

Gunmen attacked Rwandan soldiers on Saturday during an ambush in the town of Mocímboa da Praia, Cabo Delgado province, northern Mozambique, killing a girl, local authorities have announced.

The administrator of Mocímboa da Praia, Sérgio Cipriano, told Mozambican media that “the girl was shot in the abdomen and succumbed to her injuries”.

“Yesterday [Saturday], at around 22:12, a patrol of the Rwandan force was ambushed by terrorists and, during the exchange of gunfire, the terrorists fled,” he said.

Describing the attack on the “municipal radius” as a “surprise”, given that it is controlled by Rwandan forces, which are considered more effective, the administrator of Mocímboa da Praia said that the Rwandan military had not yet commented on any possible casualties within its ranks, nor was there any information yet on possible insurgents killed or injured in the confrontation.

“They have not yet informed us of anything at all,” Cipriano said.

Local residents had reported that the insurgents tried to attack a Mozambican army barracks in other incursions in the region on Saturday, Cipriano said, but these attacks have not yet been confirmed.

“We do not have any advanced data”

“Some locals say they heard some shots, but we do not have any advanced data yet,” stated Cipriano.

The Mocímboa da Praia administrator said that the situation in the town was now calm, adding that the fishermen have returned to the sea and the farmers to their fields, and that the faithful had attended Sunday services.

“We do not feel that [Saturday’s events] jeopardized the normal life of the population,” he said.

The town of Mocímboa da Praia was under the control of armed groups operating in Cabo Delgado for about a year, having been liberated by government forces from Rwanda and Mozambique in August 2021.

A province rich in gas

Since October 2017, the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.

The last major attack took place on 10 and 11 May, on the district headquarters of Macomia, with around a hundred insurgents looting the town, causing several deaths and heavy fighting with the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and the Rwandan military, which is also supporting Mozambique in the fight against the rebels.

Since the beginning of August, various sources on the ground, including the local force, have reported intense clashes in the forests of the administrative post of Mucojo (Macomia), involving helicopters, armoured vehicles and heavily armed men, with reports of shootings in places considered hideouts of the groups.

Source: Deutsche Welle