Human Rights Watch said on Saturday that reports of bodies being found on the streets after the insurgency – believed to be linked to the Islamic State terrorist group.
The city is close to a large liquefied natural gas project run by the French company Total. The attack came hours after the Mozambican government announced that Tolt had resumed work on a huge Afungi project north of Palma, where work had been suspended since January following a series of insurgent attacks.
CNN from Thursday. The video, obtained by, shows helicopters – flown by government-deployed military contractors – making a clear attempt to secure an escape corridor for dozens of people passing over a hotel that was attacked.
Among those seen in the video from the hotel compound, there were at least 20 foreign workers.
In another video obtained by CNN, Mozambique described the situation at the Palma Hotel as “crucial”, saying “we don’t have food, we only have water.”
In a video recorded on Thursday, he said: “We have been under attack since yesterday … we have been under crossfire for 24 hours.
He added, “We don’t know how we’re going to get out of here. We’re going out, but we don’t know when, by whom and by whom.”
“Helicopters are hovering around the Amarula hotel area to make sure the roads are free to go to the beach but you can hear that, we don’t know if this is possible. The situation is dramatic. We don’t eat. We just There is water. “The helicopter could be heard in her background.
The Portuguese Foreign Ministry has confirmed that one of its citizens has been wounded in a rescue operation from the region, the Portuguese news agency Lusa reported on Saturday.
A reporter working with CNN in Mozambique said some of the trapped people were able to reach the city of Pemba in a convoy on Friday.
Deva Mavinga, South Africa director of Human Rights Watch (HRW), said the terrorists “shot at civilians in their homes and on the streets in Palma as they tried to flee for their lives.”
HRW said it reached out to several citizens by phone before communications with the city were cut off on Thursday.
“People came running and shouted, ‘Al-Shabaab is here … it’s al-Shabaab … they’re killing everyone,'” a witness was quoted as saying.
The rebels are known locally as “Shabab” but have no links to the Somali group of the same name. The group’s full name is Ahl al-Sunnah wal al-Jammah (ASWJ) and it formally joined the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed Central African province last year. Earlier this month, the U.S. created the group as a terrorist organization called “ISIS-Mozambique.”
Two hotel workers told HRW that armed men opened fire on people and buildings, including the hotel.
Audio Dio recordings obtained by CNN from someone at the hotel on Thursday also included heavy gunfire.
Mozambique’s defense ministry said on Thursday that military action was under way to restore security in Palma, but that no further updates had been given.
It is unknown if the rebels still control the city. On Friday, a senior security source with direct knowledge of the incident told CNN that terrorists in Mozambique are still operating in the area.
The source said fierce fighting between the rebels and Mozambican forces and police lasted for hours, with private contractors providing helicopter air engagements to drive the rebel forces out of the city center.
The rebels attacked army and police stations and robbed two banks in the city on Wednesday night, sources said.
‘Careful planning’ by rebels
Security analyst Jasmine Operman, who writes a digest of the events of the weekly Digest in Cabo Delgado, said the attack was “carefully planned” by the rebels.
Even before the attack on Palma, the city was inaccessible due to insecurity on the southern route, which led to food shortages in the area.
Alexandre Remakers, a senior Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, told CNN that the attack on Palma was a major setback for the government, especially after the announcement, and seriously questioned its ability to secure LNG projects critical to the country’s long-term financial prosperity. “
“The total decision to resume construction guaranteed a 25-kilometer safety perimeter around the Afungi Peninsula on Mafuto, which would include Palma,” Rymeckers said.
In August last year, the ASWJ launched a large-scale attack on the port of Mosimboa da Praia, and continued to occupy the area despite government efforts to retake it.
ASWJ has made large parts of Cabo Delgado, Mozambique’s most northern province, accessible and insecure as its attacks have increased in reach and sophistication since 2017.
“ASWJ’s battle-fighting ability, command and control, and overall confidence have grown significantly over the past year,” says Rymekers.
Fighting between the group and government forces has killed more than 1,500 civilians and displaced more than 600,000, according to HRW.
Tim Lister reports from Spain, Estasio Valoi reports from Maputo, Mozambique and Isa Soares from London. David Mackenzie contributed to the reporting.
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