Mozambican forces in “surgical” operations against terrorists – AIM report

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Mozambican forces in “surgical” operations against terrorists – AIM report

4:30 CAT | 29 Oct 2020

File photo: TVM

The Mozambican defence and security forces, in the northern province of Cabo Delgado, “are engaged in surgical operations against the terrorists, against their bases and camps”, declared the Minister of the Interior, Amade Miquidade, at a Maputo press conference on Thursday.

He said operations are continuing around the main terrorist base, which the ISCAP (Islamic State Central African Province) has baptised its “Base Syria”. This base is in Mocimboa da Praia district, scene of some of the heaviest fighting in recent weeks.

Miquidade said that, in these operations over the past three days, the Mozambican forces have killed 22 terrorists.

His information was out-of-date: an hour or so after the Minister’s press conference, a military spokesperson in Cabo Delgado told Radio Mozambique that a lighting raid on Base Syria had led to the deaths of a further 19 terrorists.

A row had broken out in the country’s parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, over a demand Miquidade made on Wednesday for Renamo to hand over all information it had about the dissident group calling itself the “Renamo Military Junta” which is continuing to attack vehicles on the main roads in the central provinces of Manica and Sofala.

Miquidade told the reporters he had made the demand because the Junta is using some of the same bases and arms caches that the Renamo mainstream had been using prior to the peace agreement signed in August 2019. Some of the Renamo parliamentarians were once senior figures in the Renamo military, he pointed out, and they must know the details of the Junta’s bases.

Asked if there has been any change in the Junta’s activities and attitudes since President Filipe Nyusi declared a unilateral truce on Saturday, Miquidade said information has reached the authorities that some Junta members want to abandon their war, and join the demobilisation of the Renamo militia now under way.

But the Junta leadership took a ruthless line towards anyone who tried to leave. “They hunt them down and kill them to dissuade anyone else from trying to leave”, Miquidade said.

Source: AIM