MOZAMBIQUE: Children abducted as 60,000 flee wave of terror

Children have been kidnapped in a fresh wave of terror attacks to hit Mozambique that has caused thousands of people to flee.

Almost 60,000 people were displaced in a fortnight following attacks in the northern region of Cabo Delgado, according to the United Nations.

Father Kwiriwi Fonseca, from the Diocese of Pemba, Cabo Degado, told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), that children have been abducted and must be returned to their parents.

He said: “This aimless war only kills, kills, kills, and takes away the little hope that the people – especially the children – had.

“These children must be returned, they must be sought wherever they are, to be returned to their parents because these children deserve to dream, these children deserve to have a better future.”

Sister Aparecida Queiroz, from the Congregation of the Daughters of Jesus, told ACN: “Between 20th and 28th July, the Diocese of Pemba was particularly impacted by the new wave of brutal attacks, especially the districts of Chiúre, Ancuabe and Muidumbe.”

She said attacks were also intense on 6th and 7th August in Palma, Meluco and Quissanga.

Fr Fonseca denounced the attacks, saying they were generating a new wave of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

He said: “The humanitarian crisis caused by this war tends to be forgotten and silenced.

“This silence bothers us, at a time when thousands upon thousands of our brothers in Cabo Delgado, especially in the region of Chiúre, have seen the crisis aggravated by new attacks, their homes burned, their children taken from them.”

The war in Cabo Delgado began in 2017 with attacks carried out by jihadists linked to Daesh (ISIS).

More than 6,000 people have died and one million displaced.

According to a report by the UN, by 31st May this year, there were 461,237 IDPs who fled conflicts in the Cabo Delgado, Nampula and Niassa provinces.

In February 2024 priests, religious Sisters and other Church workers were forced to flee after Islamist insurgent groups in Cabo Degado destroyed houses and churches in several villages.

Government attempts to quell the jihadists have been unsuccessful.

The violence is not aided by damage in the region caused by natural disasters including tropical storms, droughts and flooding.

According to the UN, one million Mozambicans require emergency assistance just to survive.

Speaking on Wednesday (6th August) Paola Emerson, head of OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) in Mozambique said: “At the moment, almost 50,000 people have been displaced in about a week, following attacks in Chiúre, where more than 42,000 people have been displaced, but also in Ancuabe and Muidumbe.

“People who have fled their homes need all kinds of help to recover from this situation, this includes basic humanitarian assistance ranging from food [to] tarpaulins and protection.”

ACN provides emergency aid including trauma counselling, materials to rebuild houses and community centres, and vehicles for missionaries who work with the displaced.

Fr Fonseca thanked all the benefactors who help them through the charity.

He said: “Please continue to support the people of Cabo Delgado, continue to support those who are struggling for peace.

“We don’t want war, we want peace. Mozambique needs peace.”