Rebels attack a village in Cabo Delgado

Residents of the Missoufine community in the village of Cajeren in the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado reported this Sunday attacks by rebel groups since Saturday, with house destruction and shootings.

“My house burned down, as did my neighbor’s house. The terrorists entered in full force and were not even intimidated, since the village was located on the busiest route of the N1 national road,” said a source from the shelter where he was located.

According to the population, the attack on the village of Missoufine, area of ​​the town of Sunate (Silva Macua), in the Anquabe region, located almost 70 kilometers from the city of Pemba, began around 18:00 (5:00). 00 pm in Lisbon) and lasted almost four hours when the rebels began shooting indiscriminately, setting popular houses, most of which were poorly built, on fire.

The attack triggered a flight from the village and nearby communities, namely Sunate (Silva Macua), the headquarters of the district of Anquabe, the district of Chiure, and the city of Pemba, the provincial capital.

“My family is in Silva Macua, I chose to stay alone to deal with the situation,” said Siaka, 46, from the community of Intutupue, less than 10 kilometers from the Missoufine village where the attack took place.

At least three people were injured by stray bullets fired by militants during the incursion, local sources said.

It is the second major attack in two days by rebel groups operating in Cabo Delgado province, following the town of Macomia on Friday.

Meanwhile, the population of Macomia began returning to their homes on Saturday afternoon following reports that the group occupying the town had left, community sources previously told Lusa.

According to sources, the rebels left the main town of Macomia, which they had occupied since early Friday morning, around 14:00 (13:00 in Lisbon) on Saturday towards the administrative post of Mucoyo, leading to the return of residents.

The Ministry of National Defense confirmed on Friday an “early morning terrorist attack on the town of Macomia”, ensuring that one of the group’s leaders was wounded by the Armed Forces of Defense of Mozambique (FADM) and another was killed. .

“The attack lasted about 45 minutes and thanks to the coordinated actions of our forces, the terrorists were quickly repulsed, forcing the enemy to retreat deeper into the Mukoyo administrative post,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.

The statement added that the attack occurred around 04:45 local time (03:45 Lisbon time) and that during the “confrontation” FADM “captured a terrorist and wounded one of the leaders, known as “Issa.” who managed to escape, without any record of deaths or injuries from the Armed Forces.”

“The captured terrorist subsequently died due to serious injuries,” the statement also said.

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi confirmed the attack on the Macomia district headquarters late Friday morning, explaining that it took place in an area previously controlled by the military of the southern African mission, which is gradually being withdrawn. by July.

“It is true that this is territory occupied by our brothers who support us in retreat. But those on the ground are 100% Mozambican. Perhaps there could be reinforcements there (…). Because they’re leaving. I hope that we can come together and organize better because the transition period allows us to do that,” he acknowledged, praising the continued intervention of the Mozambican military.

Since October 2017, Cabo Delgado has been in the grip of an armed uprising, with attacks blamed on movements linked to the extremist group Islamic State.