Attacks that killed 55 people in the northern Mozambique town of Palma, an area worth billions of dollars to gas companies, have reportedly been claimed by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) via its Amaq news agency.
The government confirmed dozens of fatalities in the coastal town of 75,000 people near the Tanzanian border on Sunday, after as many as 100 IS-linked al-Shabab militants besieged Palma on March 24.
Militants fired indiscriminately at people and buildings during their assault, according to Human Rights Watch.
Mozambique’s Defense Ministry said an army operation had been launched, but IS on Monday claimed to have taken over Palma after days of battling the security forces.
Foreign workers employed nearby at French Total’s multi-billion-dollar LNG terminal construction project were among those who were forced to seek refuge in a hotel and at a gas plant amid the attacks.
One British and one South African citizen are reported to be among the dead.
Between 6,000 and 10,000 people are now waiting to be evacuated, according to AFP.
Some 1,400 people, the majority of them Total staff, were taken by boat to the town of Pemba, 250 kilometers south of Palma, on Sunday.
Thousands more are reported to be trapped at a gas plant on the Afungi Peninsula, 10 kilometers from Palma, with some expected to be evacuated by smaller boats on Monday.
Palma, located in the province of Cabo Delgado, has been targeted in an Islamist insurgency since 2017, during which time al-Shabab militants have seized whole towns.
More than 2,600 people have been killed in the conflict, half of whom are civilians, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!
Attacks that killed 55 people in the northern Mozambique town of Palma, an area worth billions of dollars to gas companies, have reportedly been claimed by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) via its Amaq news agency. Read Full Article at RT.com Read More
(Natural News) American drug manufacturer Merck dropped its bid to develop a vaccine against the Wuhan coronavirus. The firm announced the cessation of its COVID-19 vaccine program after its two candidates did not trigger strong immune responses. It said that phase one trials showed responses that did not reach the level elicited by earlier approved… […]
New York’s Attorney General Letitia James said Saturday Johnson & Johnson agreed to stop selling opioids nationwide in a $230 million settlement with the state. Read More
“Never before in the history of the US Navy has a Navy board of inquiry ignored the testimony of American eyewitnesses and taken, on faith, the word of their attackers”Captain Dr. Richard Kiepfer, USS Liberty survivor “A danger to national security exists whenever elected officials are willing to subordinate American interests to those of any […]
