Rwanda to deploy 1,000 troops in Mozambique against jihadist threat

Published on : 07/09/2021 – 18:40

Rwanda announced Friday, July 9, the sending of a thousand soldiers to Mozambique, to help the country’s authorities to deal with jihadist armed groups in the province of Cabo Delgado, in the northeast of the country. These groups, known locally as Al-Shabab (“young people” in Arabic), have been reigning terror since the end of 2017 in this province bordering Tanzania, rich in natural gas but with a very poor population. Their attacks have been ramping up over the past year.

“The government of Rwanda, at the request of Mozambique, will today begin the deployment of a contingent of 1,000 people (belonging) to the Rwanda Defense Forces and the Rwanda National Police,” the government said in a statement.

The soldiers will “support the efforts to restore the authority of the Mozambican state by carrying out fighting and security operations,” the text added. In June, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a regional organization, also decided to send troops there.

>> See also: The growing shadow of jihadists in Mozambique

The Rwandan contingent will collaborate with the Mozambican armed forces and with those of SADC “in designated areas of responsibility,” the statement continued. Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi, himself a former Minister of Defense, was until recently reluctant to any foreign military aid, insisting on the sovereignty of his country, independent since 1975.

Rwanda is a major contributor to the UN force in the Central African Republic, the Minusca, and further sent hundreds of troops to the country last year to support President Faustin-Archange Touadéra in the face of a rebel coalition.

With AFP