The Republic of Mozambique Police (PRM) has reiterated its commitment to continue working to combat terrorist groups that have been attacking Cabo Delgado province since 2017 and are now entering Niassa province, also in the northern region of the country.
Speaking on Monday (12) during the launch of PRM week, the provincial commander of that force in Cabo Delgado, Assane Fikir Nyto, explained that new measures will be adopted, with a focus on contact with the population.
The commander called for more action by PRM members to strengthen and make the force more “mature” with the aim of fighting crime. “We will go into the field to explain to the population who we are and what we have done. This is a very important task to help fight crime, as well as terrorism.”
On April 29, the Mariri hunting camp, in one of the hunting grounds of the Niassa Special Reserve, an area of 42,000 kilometers of land in eight districts that also covers Cabo Delgado, was invaded by armed men, leaving two dead and two missing.
This is the second case of alleged terrorist activity in that area, the first having been reported on April 24. Local reports indicate that the group, whose number is still unknown, entered a village in the reserve, causing panic among residents.
The Mozambican police said they were investigating the case. Defense Minister Cristovão Chume acknowledged the existence of terrorist groups in the reserve.
The United Kingdom and the US government have warned in recent days of terrorist group movements in the Niassa Special Reserve, advising their citizens to reconsider travel to some regions of the province.
Since October 2017, Cabo Delgado, a province rich in natural gas, has been facing an armed rebellion that has killed thousands and created a humanitarian crisis, resulting in more than a million internally displaced people.
In 2024 alone, at least 349 people died in attacks by Islamic extremist groups in the province, representing a 36% increase over the previous year, according to data recently released by the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS), an academic institution of the US Department of Defense specializing in conflict analysis in Africa.
The most recent major attack took place on May 10 and 11, 2024, when about a hundred insurgents stormed and looted the district headquarters of Macomia, resulting in several deaths and intense fighting with the Mozambican Defense and Security Forces, supported by Rwandan troops which are assisting the country in fighting the rebels.
