The Mozambican Defence Minister, Cristóvão Chume, on Tuesday (30) praised the support provided by the Angolan government in the fight against terrorism affecting the country, specifically the province of Cabo Delgado, since 2017.
The minister, who is in Luanda to attend the 22nd meeting of defence ministers of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP), said that it was thanks to the support of countries like Angola that villages and towns previously occupied by terrorists are now under the control of the Mozambican government.
Chume also said that the biggest concern now was providing humanitarian assistance to families that returned to the areas affected by the conflict, and thus called for increased cooperation with partners.
Cabo Delgado province has been affected by a conflict since 2017 that is terrorising the populations. Groups of armed rebels have looted and massacred villages and towns across the province and a variety of attacks have been claimed by the ‘arm’ of the self-proclaimed Islamic State in that region, which have caused over 4,000 deaths and at least a million displaced people, according to an assessment by the Mozambican authorities.
