7 killed in new terrorist attack in north Mozambique: NGO

MAPUTO, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- Terrorists who attacked the Mocimboa da Praia district in the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado have extended their reach of mob activities to the district of Palma, killing seven people and burning houses.

In an interview with Xinhua, Angelina Tayobo of the Environmental Association of Cabo Delgado (AMA), a local non-governmental organization based in that province, said the attack began from Saturday night to Sunday dawn.

"They attacked a community from the administrative post of Ulumbe, Palma district and killed seven people and burned down houses," she said.

Angelina Tayobo said since last October her organization has been moving from one community to another due to the attacks which first had happened in Mocimboa da Praia and now were extending.

"At the moment we were working in Lalane, Palma district. But now we have to leave again," she said.

According to her, AMA was not the only organization that has been affected by the terrorist attacks.

"The recent attack was in an area that is likely to compromise some organizations, because it is an area where Anadarko, an American petroleum company has built resettlement houses due to the field of oil exploration they are working on," said Tayobo.

She added that at first the mob only killed police officers, but now they attack civilians and rape women or kidnap them, and posted movement flags in communities where they attacked.

"They use various weapons, sticks, machetes and guns, and they do horrible things, they are violent, we cannot hide it or get around of this," she said.

The source also revealed that in the same violent incursion on Saturday night, the terrorists entered the house of the head of the post office, but luckily no one was at home.

"It seems they have a tendency to move out from the areas where the police took control, so the attacks are now unpredictable, it can happen at any place," said the same source.

On October 5 in 2017, a group of about 30 armed fundamentalists launched simultaneous attacks against three police stations in Mocimboa da Praia, which later was classified by the police as terrorism.

The Police of the Republic of Mozambique has not yet announced on what happened in the Saturday attack, but information indicates that they have been looking into the situation. Enditem