An abandoned, burned boat on a Mozambican beach and 2 missing men: South African authorities ...
Screen grab: TVM
Mozambican Defense and Security Forces and Rwanda Defense Forces n Tuesday announced that they have retaken one of the main centres of terrorist manoeuvres: the Locality of Awasse, located in the Administrative Post of Diaca, District of Mocímboa da Praia, TVM reports.
A joint operation by Mozambican and Rwandan forces resulted in the occupation of the main positions of armed groups around the town of Mocímboa da Praia, the insurgents’ “headquarters”, several sources told Lusa on Tuesday.
Mocímboa da Praia, where the first attack by insurgent groups was recorded in October 2017, was on Tuesday surrounded by the joint force and could be recovered, “at any time”, a source linked to the Mozambican Army. said
The joint force occupied the positions of the insurgents in Awasse and Diaca, in Mocímboa da Praia, having seized various war material from the rebels and killed several members of the armed groups, another source, linked to the Ministry of Defence of Mozambique, told Lusa, adding that operations are supported by military aviation.
After the joint force operations, the General Commander of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique visited the locality of Awasse, where he assured that the intention is to remain in the occupied points.
“The tendency is to improve even more in those points where the Defence and Security Forces, together with the Rwandan forces, are conquering”, Bernardino Rafael told the media, adding that the terrorists vandalised several infrastructure, with an emphasis on the electricity grid.
Watch the TVM report.
The coastal town of Mocímboa da Praia, considered by many as the “base” of the insurgents, is one of the main ones in the north of the province of Cabo Delgado, located 70 kilometres south of the construction area of the natural gas exploration project conducted by several international oil companies and led by Total.
The town had been invaded and occupied for a day by rebels on March 23 of last year, in an action later claimed by the ‘jihadi’ group Islamic State, and was, on June 27 and 28, the scene of long clashes between government forces and insurgent groups, which led to the flight of a considerable part of the population.
Since the beginning of the month, the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces have had the support of a thousand Rwandan soldiers and police officers in the fight against armed groups, within the framework of a bilateral agreement between the Mozambican Government and the Kigali authorities.
In addition to Rwanda, Mozambique will have support from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), in a mandate from a “joint force on alert” approved on June 23, at an extraordinary summit of the organization in Maputo that debated armed violence in that province. , with soldiers from some member countries already on the ground.
The number of soldiers the organisation will send to Mozambique is not publicly known, but experts from SADC, who were in Cabo Delgado, had already stated in April that the mission should comprise around 3,000 soldiers.
Armed groups have terrorized Cabo Delgado province since 2017, with some attacks claimed by the Islamic State extremist group.
Following the attacks, there are more than 3,100 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registration project, and more than 817,000 displaced, according to Mozambican authorities.
UPDATE: The Rwanda Defence Force contingent, in joint operations with Mozambique Armed Defence Forces (FADM), has restored state control from IS-affiliated terrorists in Cabo Delgado and liberated key infrastructure in Awasse. pic.twitter.com/2kSX7Tya7V
— The New Times (Rwanda) (@NewTimesRwanda) August 4, 2021
Mozambique insurgency:
Rwanda, Mozambique joint forces reportedly advancing in Mocímboa da Praia district after consolidating occupation of Terrorist Base in Awasse, recovering key infrastructure sites from insurgents.
-Facts on Rwandapic.twitter.com/1Eh7ScQ5ZW
— Serial Tweeper🕵🏿♂️ (@serialTweeper) August 4, 2021
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