Africa-Press – Mozambique. An attack by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) joint military force fighting terrorists in northern Mozambique killed more than two dozen young insurgents in the Mueda region of Cabo Delgado province last week.
Information provided to DW by the Kuendeleya Association, which cites military and civilian sources, indicates that clashes on the border between Mozambique and Tanzania started after local residents alleged that terrorists disguised as civilians were trying to flee to the neighbouring country.
Solider patrol in Mueda, Cabo Delgado. [File photo: DW]At this time, and with no official confirmation, the association reports that government soldiers have disappeared, that some civilians have been killed and that others have fled into the woods.
DW Africa spoke to Abudo Gafuro, coordinator of the Kuendeleya Association, which is based in Pemba and covers the entire province of Cabo Delgado.
DW Africa: What is known about allegations of attacks in the Mueda region?
Abudo Gafuro (AG):
The information that comes to us through military and civil society sources is that there was a group of mostly young terrorists, aged between 12 and 17 years old, who were trying to leave [the country] through Mueda posing as civilians entering Tanzania.
When the population of that region further north on the border between Mozambique and Tanzania discovered that they were not civilians, they denounced them, to prompt intervention by the SADC and Mozambican forces.
The Mozambican military activated the SADC regional force, especially the Tanzanian force that is positioned on that bank, but there was weak capacity. They prefer or they preferred that Rwanda operate because it is effective in its operations.
At the moment, there are some people missing, but there is an exact quantification – that 25 terrorists have been killed, and some incarcerated by SAMIM and the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces.
DW Africa: Do you know of any civilians abducted or killed during the clashes?
AG:
Right now, there are no official reports that civilians have been killed during the clashes, but one or two people have told us that there were three civilian deaths. These were civilians fleeing to another region and caught in the cross-fire. There are many other people reported missing – as many as 40 in that region.
Conflict in Cabo Delgado has caused thousands of displaced people in recent years. [File photo: DW]DW Africa: There is also talk of drones being used. Is it true?
AG:
There is talk of the use of drones by the joint force of Mozambique and SADC. They say they needed to use drones, but couldn’t, so they used planes. They wanted to use drones to chase the terrorists.
DW Africa: Is the information coming in at the moment from official sources, or is there still no position at this level?
AG:
So far there is still no official information. We only had information from a community network that also reported on the incident in the Mueda region and on people abandoning their places of residence, as well as their disappearance in the woods in regions further north in Mozambique and in southern Tanzania.
DW Africa: When did the attacks occur?
AG:
The attacks probably took place on the 12th and 13th of November.
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