...an idea whose time has gone...
agencies, who had been forced to abandon the strategic town of Mocimba da Praia after bully boyz overran it last year, could now return and offer life-saving services. The pull-out left residents without food and medical supplies.
After Rwanda deployed 1,000 soldiers last month, Mozambican government forces started reclaiming territory from the gang linked to the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
(ISIS). Mocimva da Praia had fallen to the bully boyz in August last year, but Mozambican Defence spokesperson Omar Saranga said the joint forces last week took control of government buildings, the port, airport and hospital -- important installations in the town.
Mozambican and Rwandan forces are now working on securing surrounding villages, which are still under the control of murderous Moslems, according to Zenaida Machado, a senior researcher at Human Rights Watch's Africa Division. This has paved the way for humanitarian organizations to return to Mocimboa da Praia.
"The government should immediately facilitate rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access to Mocimboa da Praia, meeting obligations as a member state of the Kampala Convention, an African Union
...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful...
treaty on internal displacement, and under international humanitarian law," she said.
Ms Machado said the Mozambican authorities must move quickly to ensure humanitarian aid
reaches local residents, who have been trapped in the town for more than a year."The Mozambican government should move quickly to fully secure Mocimboa da Praia town and surrounding villages before residents return to their homes," said Ms Machada, adding, "Failure to do so could place thousands at risk from further attacks by al-Shabaab
...... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa...
and fighting between the group and government forces."
Besides Rwanda's firepower, Mozambique's fight against the Islamists has been bolstered by the arrival of forces of other Southern African Development Community countries.