The President of the Republic of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, said in Maputo on Friday that the country’s “leader of the terrorists” had been “inactivated”, but warned that the fight against terrorism continues.
“We conveyed that message, that we continued to fight, and finally I learned that the Chief of Staff of the Mozambican Armed Forces had communicated to the sergeants, soldiers and officers that he had been knocked out of action on the 22nd, the chief of the Mozambique Armed Forces . the terrorists in Mozambique, Ibin Omar”said the head of state during the presidency of the republic, after meeting his Cuban colleague Miguel Díaz-Canel, who started a two-day visit to the country this Friday.
“So it means that the persecution prevails and continues as far as terrorists operate, in small groups”added Filipe Nyusi.
“We have said what we have said, which must sometimes be understood, that terrorism does not end, nor can it be said to have ended. But we said that those villages that were held by terrorists until 2021, all of them, I say the district capitals, were recovered by the Defense and Security Forces, with the support of our partners in Rwanda and SAMIM [missão em Moçambique]from SADC [Comunidade de Desenvolvimento da África Austral]”said the Mozambican head of state.
The Chief of the General Staff of the Mozambican Armed Forces, Joaquim Rivas Mangrasse, announced on Friday the elimination of the country’s leader of terrorism, Mozambican Bonomade Machude Omar, along with other leadership elements of the terrorist group.
“The investigation conducted, and still ongoing, verified with factual evidence that the main leader who has directed operations since the outbreak of terrorism in Mozambique, Mozambican Bonomade Machude, known as Ibn, has been knocked out of action. [ou Ibin] Omar in the Forest, also known as Abu Suraka”announced in a statement to the press at the Maringanha barracks in Pemba General Joaquim Rivas Mangrasse.
“The images are available, they deserve a final evaluation, because in addition to the terrorist leader Ibn Omar, two more of his immediate followers, yet to be identified, were killed in the company of even more terrorists”he added in the same post.
Ibn Omar, considered the leader of the radical Islamic State group in Mozambique, was the target of the second phase of the ongoing so-called ‘Coup Duro II’ operation. On the ground in Cabo Delgado, the Mozambican armed forces have been fighting terrorism since July 2021 with the support of Rwanda and the SADC.
“As we said, terrorism is not over yet”General Joaquim Rivas Mangrasse warned Friday, adding that the rebels are currently operating in “small scattered groups”.
“This is the reason for our permanent sanding and cleaning work”he claimed.
“However, we reaffirm that the enemy has been driven from all occupied district headquarters. Once again, operations are continuing in coordination with our partners.”added the Chief of the General Staff of the Mozambican Armed Forces.
The Islamic State terrorist group this week claimed two attacks on Mozambican forces in Cabo Delgado province, in the north of the country, indicating the deaths of at least nine soldiers, but not yet officially confirmed.
Two reports released by the group’s propaganda channels state that the first attack was the result of a “bomb explosion” against Mozambican forces in Mocímboa da Praia district, without further details.
In the second alleged attack, in the same province, but in this case in Macomia district, the Islamic State group claims to have killed seven Mozambican soldiers and two officers in an “ambush”.
The conflict in northern Mozambique has already displaced a million people, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and about 4,000 dead, according to the ACLED conflict registry project.
Source: DN
