Rwandan security forces killed more than a dozen Islamic State-backed insurgents in battle in the village of Limala in the Mocímboa da Praia district of Cabo Delgado province this morning, local sources told Zitamar News.
Insurgents attempted to loot Limala at around 4am but were caught by Rwandan troops based in Mbau approximately 10km away. Another group of insurgents simultaneously set up two roadblocks on the N380 highway between Chinda and Awasse, possibly to divert security forces, a local source claimed.
A video circulating online shows the bodies of seven insurgents with bullet wounds. Estimates of the number of insurgents killed vary, but more than a dozen have been confirmed dead, according to local sources.
President Filipe Nyusi acknowledged the clash this morning and claimed that Mozambican and Rwandan forces were pursuing insurgents who fled Limala. He also said that dozens of insurgents had been killed in Limala and in Nangade district, where the Local Force militia began operations against the insurgents two days ago. Three members of a family believed to have joined the insurgency were killed by members of the Local Force at the village of Nova Família in Nangade on Monday.
Yesterday, a small group of insurgents was reported firing shots in the village of Naquiero, approximately 30km from Limala, local sources reported.
