12 June: A group of self-appointed vigilantes tried to confront some remaining insurgents with machetes in north Palma. Looting houses, burning four houses and killing one person and taking three hostages. From July to 4 August, Mozambican and allied forces had captured the settlements of Chinda, Mumu, Mbau, Zambia, Mapalanganha, Maputo, Tete, Njama and Quelimane from insurgents. In November, a number of government troops and 5 fighters from the Wagner Group were killed in an ambush, with ISIL claiming responsibility for the attack.
On 21 September, 12 people were killed, 15 injured, and 55 houses were burned by jihadists in the village of Paqueue in the province of. 31 August: 3 civilians were killed and dismembered in Quissanga during a suspected insurgent attack. 7 November: Insurgents attacked the village of Ntuleni, killing one person and stealing food supplies. 20 September: Insurgents attacked the villages of Bilibiza, Nacuta, and Tapara, killing at least 17 civilians. 18 July: ISIL operatives attacked the village of Mandava, engaging with Mozambican militia, killing 2 of them. On the same day, IS also claimed responsibility for attacking the village of Ikomila, in the Mueda region, killing one Mozambican militiaman and setting fire to several buildings. 8 December: Insurgents attacked the village of Lichengue, in the Mecula district of Niassa province, burning down several houses and killing at least one civilian. [224] In addition, South Africa has dispatched naval patrol vessels, and Rwanda has increased its presence along the coast. 21 November: Mozambican militiamen fought off an insurgent attack near Mueda town. 30 June: Government forces recaptured Mocmboa da Praia. 26 November: Insurgents once again captured Namacande, Muidumbe district capital, and Muatide. Whilst in the town, insurgents reportedly killed 1 civilian and 2 policemen in addition to looting the town. On 22 October, further skirmishes occurred near Columbe village, about 16 kilometres (9.9mi) south of an installation of. 22 May: There was fighting between government forces and insurgents in lower Palma, insurgents burned down 14 homes and a mosque in lower Palma. One civilian was beheaded by insurgents during the attack. 24 April: the Mozambican government admitted for the first time that Islamic State followers were active in the country and involved in the insurgency. ", "What is the Wagner Group, Russia's mercenary organisation? On 20, 21 and 22 April the group attacked the villages of Diaca Velha, near the boundary with Nangade district as well as the village of Mangwaza in the Palma district. During the occupation, militants killed 3 civilians the town of Namiune.
On 21 March, residents of the village of Manilha abandoned their homes after witnessing armed men carrying out attacks in the surrounding area on the banks of the river Quinhevo. 12 January: Insurgents attacked Luneke, Nangane district, killing 3 civilians and then fleeing on a motorcycle. Insurgents killed four people in Quionga, burned homes including that of the head of the Quionga administrative post and looted food in the village. The militia also stated they looted the civilians' property and beheaded them to make it look like it was the result of an insurgent attack. The troops ransacked the town and looted property of civilians. 2 July: Insurgents attacked the village of Namande, killing 7 civilians and 3 Mozambican militiamen. 
[57] By August 2018, the Mozambican police had identified six men as leaders of the militants in Cabo Delgado: Abdul Faizal, Abdul Raim, Abdul Remane, Ibn Omar, "Salimo", and Nuno Remane. 27 January: The village of Mitambo, in eastern Meluco district, was attacked by a group of insurgents. The insurgents later left the village and began an attack on the village of Muaguide, killing another 8 civilians. 10 July: 9 women displaced by the fighting near Palma drowned after their boats capsized near the island of Ilha Vamize. [56], Ansar al-Sunna claims that Islam as practised in Mozambique has been corrupted and no longer follows the teachings of Muhammad. No casualties have yet been reported from the attack, but insurgents stole food and burned homes in the village. 15 January: ISIS operatives abducted 3 Mozambican militia fighters from Nova Zambezia and executed them by beheading. Les transformations de lislam Pemba au Mozambique". On 5 June, six men armed with machetes and guns killed seven people and injured four others and set dozens of homes on fire in the village of Naunde in the Macomia district. 12 November: Mozambican authorities detain 12 Iraqi nationals for supposed links to Islamist insurgents after discovering numerous weapons and other equipment in their possession. 18 August: Government forces recaptured Marere south of Mocimboa da Praia. c.26 September: 4 insurgents were killed near Mucojo by Mozambican security forces. 711. 17 June: Mozambican troops raided the village of Quitunda, just south of Palma. The village of Rafique was also attacked, where one civilian was beheaded. Bonate, Liazzat J. K. ,"Islam in Northern Mozambique: A Historical Overview." Clashes were also reported to have taken place through to 1 August. The district government stated that both men studied Islam in. Also on 5 February, insurgents ambush a Mozambican army patrol near Nova Zambezia, Macomia district, resulting in the deaths of 5 insurgents and one Mozambican soldier. The militants also attacked a security post in Naliendele, killing several civilians and two Mozambican soldiers. Several other soldiers were injured. On the same day, government forces launched an offensive operation in Ntuleni, Palma district, killing an unknown number of insurgents, who were also using civilians as human shields. As a result, many locals fled the village. [33] Some of the Ansar al-Sunna militants have also journeyed abroad to receive direct training by other militant groups. 1 June: Government forces recaptured Macomia killing two jihadist leaders. [15], While religion does play a fundamental role in the conflict, analysts believe the most important factors in the insurgency are widespread social, economic, and political problems in Mozambique. 3 May: 7 displaced civilians from Palma were killed and several more were killed after insurgents sunk two boats carrying displaced people off the coast of Ilha Mucongwe. [54] Some of the militants are known to speak Portuguese, the official language of Mozambique, however others speak Kimwane, the local language, and Swahili, the lingua franca language spoken north of that area in the Great Lakes region. 18 November: Mozambican forces overran an insurgent base Ninga, in southern Nangade district, killing at least 2 insurgents. From mid-2018, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has allegedly become active in northern Mozambique as well,[14] and claimed its first attack against Mozambican security forces in June 2019. 11 August: ISCAP rebels once again took control of Mocmboa da Praia after a. 30 October: A refugee ship carrying 74 refugees capsized near Ilha Makalowe killing 54 people. 4 June: Government forces repelled insurgent attack on Namacunde. IS later claimed responsibility. Rwandan casualties are unknown. [221] Mozambique has formed an arrangement with Italy to train its navy,[222] while Portugal, the former colonial power, has donated speedboats to the country. In general, the province lacks infrastructure and the state is underrepresented, easing the spread of the insurgency. [34] In addition, bandits have exploited the rebellion to carry out raids. Conflicts on the land spill over to the sea, creating an unsafe environment for offshore investments. 30 April: Reports of fresh clashes between Mozambican troops and insurgents in Palma began to surface after insurgents burnt more buildings in the town, in the days prior, in an attempt to force Mozambican troops out. [15][57] This behavior alienated much of the local population instead of converting them to Ahlu Sunnah Wa-Jamo, so that the movement's members broke away and formed their own places of worship. [213] Maritime infrastructure has also been targeted, with the key port of Mocimboa da Praia being seized. 30 November: Insurgents attacked the village of Macananje, 20 kilometers from the capital of Mecula district, Niassa province, wounding a member of the Mozambican security forces. IS later claimed the attack. [226] However, mere capability training for law enforcement authorities is controversial, as corruption, power abuse and involvement in illicit economies is high in Mozambiques state authorities. Of those captured, two escaped and at least seven were beheaded by the insurgents. 22 February: Militants attacked Ingalonga, Nangade district, beheading at least 2 people. 2 December: President Nyusi meets with several US counter-terrorism officials to discuss combating the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, 3 December: Malawi's president announces that troops from the. 19 July: Insurgents attacked the village of Namande, killing 3 civilians. On 3 June, five civilians were decapitated in an attack on the village of Rueia in the Macomia district. As they left, they were ambushed by members of a local militia. 26 September: Mozambique claims to be in control of Mocimboa da Praia, despite not having a physical presence in the city. On 5 January 2019, Mozambican authorities unlawfully detained journalist Amade Abubacar, who had reported on the insurgency. Russia has deployed the Wagner Group, a private security organization heavily linked to the Russian government[219] in Northern Mozambique but failed its mission to support counter-insurgency activities and withdrew in 2020. The attack left one lieutenant colonel dead and two other Mozambican soldiers dead. On 26 December, Police Spokesman Inacio Dino announced the commencement of counter-insurgency operations in the forests surrounding Mutumbate, in Cabo Delgado province. 29 November: IS operatives attacked the village of Chitoio, in Macomia district, killed two civilians and then attacked the village of Chai, claiming that the Mozambican forces stationed in the village fled from their positions. 21 May: Government forces reportedly recaptured Diaca and Namacunde. 7 February: Insurgents attacked the village of Namuembe, south of Nangade, killing one civilian. 19 December: It was reported that ISIS insurgents beheaded a. 8 January: IS claimed responsibility for an attack on the village of Alberto Chipande in the Mueda district, killing one civilian and one off-duty Mozambican militiaman. 24 August: 10 fishermen were beheaded by insurgents in Mucojo. 15 June: 7 dead civilians were discovered near Novo Cabo Delgado, Macomia district. 27 June: Mocmboa da Praia was again captured by Islamist militants. 14 October: In the first heavy attack outside Mozambique by local terrorists, hundreds of Islamic State and Ansar-al-Sunna members attack a village in. The two deaths were by, On 4 December, the district government of Momboa da Praia in northern Mozambique named two men, Nuro Adremane and Jafar Alawi, as suspected of organising the attacks by an armed group against the police in October. [214], Attacks on maritime infrastructure can be attributed to rising social inequality. Seven truckloads of weaponry as well as several militants were reported captured. The aftermath of the attack left 50 dead, including women and children, and an unknown number injured. 31 July: ISIL claim an attack on Mozambican positions in Mandava, killing at least one Mozambican army officer. However pursuit operations were launched on 22 April by Mozambican security personnel capturing 30 jihadist in the process. [215] The exploitation of the region's natural resources, including the offshore gas fields, puts the native population at risk, as they face displacement and very little profit returns to the region due to high levels of corruption. The village was raided of its health supplies and two houses were burnt down. At least one Mozambican soldier was killed and several weapons were captured by the militants. 16 September: 5 civilians were killed by insurgents for brewing alcohol in Namaluco, Quissanga district. 26 July: Government forces recaptured Chai. There, Ansar al-Sunna militants were trained by ex-policemen, and ex-frontier guards who had been fired and held grudges against the government. Bonate, Liazzat J. K., "LAgence des musulmans dAfrique. In mid February: state newspaper Notcias reported that only 6,294 young people from Cabo Delgado have been conscripted into the military in the current conscription period, which runs from the beginning of January to the end of February. They beat and then beheaded a village leader and kidnapped four boys aged between 10 and 12. 4 December: Militants ambush a convoy of Mozambican troops in the village of Muidumbe, killing 25 soldiers in an intense firefight before retreating into the woods. 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