The Mozambican head of state, Daniel Chapo, received assurances of Tanzania’s continued support in the fight against terrorist attacks that have affected the northern province of Cabo Delgado since 2017.
‘We have a bilateral agreement’ with Tanzania, announced the Mozambican Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Maria dos Santos Lucas, as she took stock of the country’s activities on the first day of the African Union summit, which is taking place in Ethiopia.
‘The President [Daniel Chapo] was grateful that SAMIM [Southern African Development Community Mission in Mozambican] had withdrawn, but Tanzania stayed on the ground and continues to support us. The Tanzanian government has shown its willingness to continue supporting Mozambique in the fight against terrorism,’ she said.
These assurances were given to the Mozambican President after a meeting with the President of the Republic of Tanzania, Samia Hassan Suluhu, on the sidelines of the 38th Ordinary Session of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), taking place in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.
Since October 2017, the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.
The then Mozambican head of state, Filipe Nyusi, had guaranteed on 2 July 2024 that Tanzania would continue ‘bilaterally’ to support the fight against armed groups in Cabo Delgado, even with the departure of the SAMIM military mission, of which it is a member.
The organisation had been in Cabo Delgado since mid-2021 and, in August 2023, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) approved its extension for another 12 months, until July 2024, with a gradual withdrawal plan.
The mission included troops from eight SADC countries, ‘working in collaboration with the Mozambique Armed Defence Forces and other troops deployed to Cabo Delgado’.
Tanzania borders two provinces in northern Mozambique, namely Niassa and Cabo Delgado, the latter affected by attacks by armed groups.
The last major attack claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State took place on 10 and 11 May 2024, at the district headquarters of Macomia, in Cabo Delgado, with around a hundred attackers sacking the town, causing several deaths and heavy fighting with the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and Rwandan soldiers, who are supporting the country in the fight against the rebels.
