Mozambican President Claims Army Beating Islamic Fighters

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi claimed that armed forces were making inroads against insurgents in the gas-rich northern province of Cabo Delgado, Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) reported.

It is the first time the president has spoken publicly about the Islamist terror attacks that he said have killed nearly 2,000 people and caused 826,000 to be displaced in the past five years.

According to the European Union (EU), the conflict has left 1.3 million people in severe humanitarian need. A number of countries have recently agreed to assist Mozambique.

The EU set up a new military mission earlier this month to train Mozambican forces and the United States (US) has also pledged its bilateral support. South African media reported that the 16-country intergovernmental Southern African Development Community (SADC) has already started sending troops to counter the growing number of attacks.

Nyusi said in his televised address that at first, it was difficult to understand who the attackers were, but over time the government learned they were terrorists with international connections.

Experts say the Islamist rebellion has its roots in local people's grievances with the government. The region is rich in gas but its inhabitants remain very poor. French energy company Total, which is involved in a liquid gas project worth almost 17 billion euros ($20 billion), withdrew its staff in April following a major attack in the coastal city of Palma that was eventually claimed by the Islamic State (IS).

Nyusi said terrorists intended to completely occupy the area near the Total facilities during the attack on Palma, but the defense forces had prevented this. "As a result, we can say that Mozambique continues to be a stable country, with the exception of some areas," he concluded.

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