Up to nine Mozambican soldiers were killed on Tuesday in an insurgent ambush in northeastern Macomia district, Cabo Delgado province, after their convoy came under RPG and small arms fire.
The convoy of four armoured personnel carriers was travelling from the south up to Quiterajo in Macomia, where insurgents have been active for several months, when it was attacked, local sources reported.
One vehicle was forced off the road and flipped over after it was hit by a rocket. Insurgents approached the wreckage and executed the survivors, according to a report from Islamic State-affiliated news agency Amaq.
A senior army general was likely travelling with the ambushed convoy. It does not appear that he was among the casualties.
The Mozambican Ministry of Defence issued a rare statement on Wednesday acknowledging that one of their vehicles was destroyed by insurgents while on patrol but insisted that all occupants escaped unharmed.
The statement also claimed that Mozambican security forces killed insurgent leaders Abu Kital and Ali Mahando in recent operations. Little is known about the identities of these two individuals. The Southern African Development Community Mission in Mozambique claimed to have killed a similarly-named Abu Quitali in November 2021.
This article was produced by Zitamar News under the Cabo Ligado project, in collaboration with Mediafax and ACLED. The contents of the article are the sole responsibility of Zitamar News.
