Mozambique: Mocímboa da Praia attacked once again, casualties unknown – Lusa

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Mozambique: Mocímboa da Praia attacked once again, casualties unknown – Lusa

6:50 CAT | 12 Aug 2020

Armed groups that have been leading attacks in Cabo Delgado invaded the Port of Mocímboa da Praia in the early hours of Wednesday according to a source from the Mozambican army.

“Several of our colleagues in the marine force who have died,” said the source, adding that there have been clashes between government forces and the group that have resulted in an unknown number of deaths and injuries.

According to the source, in the port facilities of the village, located about 345 kilometres from the provincial capital of Cabo Delgado, the attackers, who are claiming a ‘jihadist’ cause against the authorities, have managed to install a point of resistance.

“Many people have fled. Those who suffered most were those who were on standby but were not properly equipped to deal with the insurgents,” the source said.

“Normally, in these conditions, we abandon the position and then we will prepare to try to recover it,” he added.

Another local source told Lusa the village is almost abandoned, explaining the population continues to flee the villages and the lines of communication are also broken.

“Few people have the courage to continue living in Mocímboa da Praia,” said the source, who took refuge months ago in the provincial capital.

The attack on the port of Mocímboa da Praia follows others that have been recorded in recent days in several villages in the area, with frequent clashes between the security and defence forces and insurgents, classified as a terrorist threat.

Mocímboa da Praia had been invaded and occupied for a day by rebels on 23 March, in an action later claimed by the ‘jihadist’ group Islamic State.

Mocímboa da Praia is one of the main villages in the province, situated 70 kilometres south of the construction area of the natural gas exploration project conducted by several international oil companies and led by Total.

The attacks by armed groups in Cabo Delgado province erupted in October 2017 even in Mocímboa da Praia and have already caused at least 1,000 deaths, and some of the groups’ actions have been claimed by the ‘jihadist’ Islamic State (EI) group.

According to the United Nations, armed violence in the northern province of Mozambique has forced 250,000 people to flee from insecure districts further north.

Source: Lusa