What You Need to Know
Residents in Mucojo, Cabo Delgado province, have reported sightings of suspected insurgents, raising concerns about safety in the area. Locals fear possible attacks as these individuals, some allegedly local youths, blend into the community before disappearing. Security forces are monitoring the situation closely to prevent further infiltration.
Africa-Press – Mozambique. Residents of Mucojo, in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province, reported on Tuesday the presence of suspected terrorists within the community, 40 kilometres from Macomia, causing fear among locals.
Local sources said the suspects appeared as civilians among residents before disappearing a few days later, leaving the community worried about possible attacks.
“Sometimes people appear there and then vanish, without the communities knowing for sure where they go,” a source said, speaking from Macomia.
Sources added that some suspects are local youths allegedly belonging to the armed group carrying out attacks in Cabo Delgado.
“Some are not strangers, they are from Mucojo, but they stay and then vanish without saying where they are going,” another source said.
The sources also noted that the defence and security forces know about the situation and remain on the ground to monitor and prevent opportunism.
“The forces know and are always there in coordination with the communities, monitoring and doing everything to avoid infiltrators,” the source said.
Gas-rich Cabo Delgado has faced extremist attacks for eight years, with the first recorded on 5 October 2017, in the Mocímboa da Praia district.
The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), an organisation that monitors political violence, estimates that the province recorded two violent events in the last two weeks. One involved Islamic State extremists who killed 13 people, bringing the total deaths since 2017 to 6,515.
According to ACLED’s latest report with data from 9 to 22 March, 2,172 of the 2,342 violent events recorded since the insurgency began involved individuals associated with Islamic State Mozambique (ISM).
These attacks caused 6,515 deaths in eight and a half years. This total includes the 13 victims reported in the two-week period, whom ACLED says were fishermen shot by the Mozambique armed defence forces (FADM).
Cabo Delgado has been plagued by extremist violence since 2017, with the first attack occurring in Mocímboa da Praia. The region’s rich gas resources have attracted various armed groups, leading to a prolonged conflict that has resulted in significant casualties. The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project reports over 6,500 deaths linked to the insurgency, highlighting the ongoing security challenges faced by local communities and the government in restoring peace and stability in the region.
