AFRICA/MOZAMBIQUE - A mission attacked in the province of Capo Delgado

Thursday, 16 April 2020 jihadists   violence   missionaries  

Maputo (Agenzia Fides) - Jihadist terrorist groups operating in the northern province of Cabo Delgado murdered 5 people in the Quirimbas archipelago on Good Friday, April 10, according to the newspaper "Carta de Mocambique". The jiihadists, passed off as civilians, transported small boats from the mainland to the archipelago, about seven kilometers away, on Thursday 2 April.
They took a stand on the island of Quirimba on Thursday evening and launched their murderous attack on Friday morning. Of the five people killed, three drowned while trying to escape. One of the victims was burned alive, while the fifth was killed by gunfire. About 60 people were taken hostage, but released later in the day. Insurgents attacked the local primary school, a health center, the official residence of the head of the Quirimba administrative office and destroyed an unspecified number of houses of the local population.
Further details emerged about last week's attacks on the Muidumbe district. In the village of Muambula, terrorists killed five people and vandalized the local secondary school and the mission in Nangololo, which includes one of the oldest churches in Cabo Delgado.
According to His Exc. Mgr. Luíz Fernando Lisboa, Bishop of Pemba, the missionaries' homes were destroyed and the church suffered damage. The missionaries managed to take refuge in Pemba. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 16/4/2020)


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