Mozambique struggling to stem insurgency in troubled Cabo Delgado

Islamist militants in the Mozambique’s northern Nampula province have killed six people, all by beheading, abducted three others and set dozens of houses on fire, Mozambique’s president confirmed, warning that the Islamist militant movement is spreading to new territory despite efforts by government and regional forces to contain it.
Speaking live on national radio Wednesday (7 September), President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi also said that the militants were attempting to bolster their numbers by trying to recruit new members in Nampula province but were unsuccessful.“Hence, their nervousness,” the president said in Portuguese. “They are very nervous.” This was the third terrorist attack within five days in the province, where the incidents are creating a new wave of displaced people, though authorities do not have exact numbers.
In his speech, the Mozambique leader said his country’s defense and security forces, with the support of troops from Rwanda and the regional bloc SADC, are fighting the militants and they have recently recaptured a terrorist Katupha base in Cabo Delgado province. The terrorist base is where terrorists had taken refuge after being displaced in towns and villages now under the responsibility of government authorities. Nyusi added that finding the militants is difficult because many are hiding in a dense forest. With the worsening of the terrorist wave in Cabo Delgado in recent years, many residents have fled to Nampula, looking for a safe and peaceful place to live.