Mozambique: Number of IDPs rises in Macomia town as clashes intensify – Lusa

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: Number of IDPs rises in Macomia town as clashes intensify – Lusa

2:52 CAT | 20 Aug 2024

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Lusa]

Residents of the district capital of Macomia, in Cabo Delgado, on Tuesday reported an increase in the number of displaced people by intense clashes in the woods of Mucojo between government and Rwandan forces on one side and armed rebels on the other.

“People are arriving [at the district headquarters town]. The fire on the ground is intense. (…) The flow of people arriving began on Saturday,” a resident of the district headquarters, located 40 kilometres from the Mucojo forests, where the clashes are taking place, told Lusa.

A source from the Local Force told Lusa that the clashes in the forests of Mucojo administrative post between the joint military mission and the insurgents began in early August, involving helicopters, armoured vehicles and armed men, with reports of firefights in places believed to be used as hideouts by these groups.

“The idea is to dislodge the terrorists from their positions,” said the member of the Local Force, made up of former fighters from the national liberation struggle who support the authorities in combating the insurgency.

The clashes have caused some farmers to leave out of fear of the intense bombardments taking place close to the agricultural areas of Namigure and Nambine, where some were carrying out activities such as clearing forests in preparation for the next agricultural season.

“People were preparing for the next season but, with the bombings, the situation is complicated, because some people have abandoned their ‘machambas’ [plots],” another source from Macomia complained to Lusa.

Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion since October 2017, with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.

The last major attack took place on 10 and 11 May at 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.

The population of other districts in the province has reported the movement of these groups of insurgents, who cause panic as they pass through the forests, but there have been no reports of clashes, which is happening at a time when farmers are trying to harvest their crops.

President of Mozambique Filipe Nyusi said on June 16 that the action of the various defence forces had made it possible to eliminate “practically all” of the bases of the terrorist groups operating in Cabo Delgado.

“The result of this combination of forces is surprising. They have managed to deactivate the terrorists in all the towns and villages that had been occupied, destroyed practically all of the enemy’s fixed bases, turning them into nomads, and put many violent extremists out of action, including some of their main leaders,” Nyusi said in Mueda, Cabo Delgado province.

The head of state acknowledged the efforts of the Mozambican Armed Defence Forces, together with the Rwandan military, the mission of the southern African countries – which concluded its total withdrawal on 4 July – and the Local Force, in combating these groups over the last six years.

“They [the insurgents] are out there in the bush, but they no longer stay in one place because they are afraid of being found,” he added, renewing his appeal to the population “to continue to reinforce their vigilance”.

Source: Lusa