Authorities Investigate Video of Alleged Terrorists

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Authorities Investigate Video of Alleged Terrorists
Authorities Investigate Video of Alleged Terrorists

Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican authorities are investigating a video released by extremist groups showing alleged terrorists with radios and military uniforms invading a mosque in the town of Mocímboa da Praia on 7 October.

“We also received the video,” said Cabinet spokesperson Inocêncio Impissa, when questioned by journalists about the publication, which went viral in recent days. In the video, the alleged terrorists appear inside the mosque, with their faces covered, during a prayer period, threatening worshippers inside, repeating a similar episode from previous days.

“At this stage, the expert work is to understand where, with whom, to see if it is possible to identify them. And here we count on our communities,” said Impissa, adding that “intelligence work is being carried out”.

The incident occurred around 7:00 p.m. on 7 October, at the mosque in the Kumilamba neighbourhood, close to the local port of Mocímboa da Praia.

“We were performing the last Salat [prayer] when a group of about nine men unknown to us told us to pray to Islam for salvation,” said a source from Mocímboa da Praia, describing the invasion of the mosque

The source added that the incursion left the worshippers in a state of agitation, and they remained in the mosque out of fear until the rebels left the town about 30 minutes later.

“We did not leave because we were afraid; they all had firearms,” said the source.

There are no reports of deaths in this incursion, but the panic caused among residents reinforced the intention to abandon the town, given the multiple attacks over the past month.

Cabo Delgado province, in northern Mozambique, rich in gas, has been targeted by terrorist attacks for eight years, with the first attack recorded on 5 October 2017 in the district of Mocímboa da Praia.

Eight years after the first attack, the government states it continues to make efforts to ensure the safety of people and property so that communities can remain in their homes in peace.

The President of Mozambique, Daniel Chapo, described on 6 October the terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado as “barbaric acts” against “human dignity.”

The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) reports 6,257 deaths after eight years of terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado, warning of ongoing instability with renewed violence.

“The situation is very unstable. In September, the Islamic State of Mozambique (ISM) was active in 11 districts of Cabo Delgado and also crossed into Nampula at the end of the month,” Peter Bofin, ACLED researcher, told Lusa regarding the eight years of armed insurgency in the region.

According to Peter Bofin, senior researcher at the organisation, which collects and analyses data on violent conflicts and protests worldwide, at least 2,209 violent events have been recorded in Cabo Delgado since October 2017, with 6,257 reported deaths, 2,631 of those civilians.

Almost 40,000 people have fled from six districts of Cabo Delgado, as well as the neighbouring province of Nampula, due to the escalation of terrorist attacks in northern Mozambique, according to data this month from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

According to the agency’s most recent field report, between 22 September and 6 October, the increase in attacks and insecurity caused by armed groups led to “new displacements” totalling 39,643 people, equivalent to 12,335 families, mainly in the districts of Balama, Mocímboa da Praia, Montepuez, and Chiúre in Cabo Delgado, but also in Memba, Nampula province.

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