Mozambique: Four alleged rebels surrender to state forces in Macomia

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Mozambique: Four alleged rebels surrender to state forces in Macomia

11:05 CAT | 24 Aug 2022

File photo: DW

Four alleged members of the rebel groups terrorising northern Mozambique since 2017 have handed themselves over to the Mozambican armed defence and security forces in the district of Macomia in Cabo Delgado, an official source announced.

The men were among a group of 21 people rescued in the bush during clearing work in Macomia during the “most recent operations of the armed defence and security forces of Mozambique”, Omar Saranga, coordinator of the Northern Operational Theatre, advanced to state media.

“Four young men who were in this group volunteered and said that they really were part of the ranks of the terrorists,” he said.

The group also indicated a hiding place where they kept four weapons and their ammunition, Saranga said, adding that government forces were continuing to persuade the men to “give all possible information.

For the coordinator of the Northern Operational Theatre, the attitude of the four men shows that the appeals made by the authorities for those who are part of rebel groups to turn themselves in to the defence and security forces are “having an effect”.

“We want more citizens who are in the hands of terrorists to turn themselves in to take care of their villages and families,” Saranga said, adding that the action shows that the Mozambican force is “credible and respectful of human rights”.

Cabo Delgado province is rich in natural gas but has been terrorised since 2017 by armed rebels, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.

There are 784,000 internally displaced people due to the conflict, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and around 4,000 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registration project.

Since July 2021, an offensive by government troops with Rwandan support, later joined by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), has allowed areas where there was a rebel presence to recover, but their flight has provoked new attacks in other districts used as passage or temporary refuge.

Source: Lusa