Article In Islamic State (ISIS) Weekly Claims Ten Civilians Killed, Over 200 Houses Burned In Series of Attacks Against Christian Villages In Northern Mozambique In Two-Week Span
Issue 425 of the Islamic State’s (ISIS) weekly Al-Naba’, published[1] on January 12, 2024, contained a one-page article detailing the group’s operations against Christian civilians in Mozambique over the past two weeks. According to the article, ISIS operatives killed 10 Christians and burned over 200 houses in eight operations centered on Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province. All the operations were conducted as part of the “And Kill Them Wherever You Find Them” campaign, launched on January 4 in an audio message by the group’s spokesperson, Abu Hudhayfah Al-Ansari.[2] This report is based on the article.
Six Civilians Killed, Over 170 Houses Burned In Mocimboa Da Praia District
On January 3, ISIS operatives assaulted the village of Ntotoe near Mocimboa da Praia, killing three civilians and burning a church and over 60 houses, before returning to their positions unharmed. On January 7, the Islamic State Mozambique Province (ISMP) published[3] five photos documenting the attack, showing corpses and property in flames.
On January 5, ISIS operatives attacked the village of Chimbanga in the Mocimboa da Praia district, killing three civilians and burning over 70 houses and three motorcycles.
On January 7, ISIS operatives machine-gunned civilians in a village in the same district, causing them to flee and burning nearly 40 houses.
Two Civilians Killed, Over 66 Houses Burned In Macomia District
On January 2, ISIS operatives machine-gunned two ships of the Mozambican army near an island in the Macomia district, wounding at least one soldier and causing damage to the ships. Al-Naba’ attached an “exclusive” photo from the attack, documenting several ISIS fighters on the coast.
On January 4, ISIS operatives machine-gunned civilians in the village of Chai in the Macomia district, killing one and causing the others to flee. The operatives burned six houses before returning to their positions unharmed.
On January 7, ISIS operatives machine-gunned a concentration of the Mozambican army in a village in the Macomia district, causing the forces to flee, seizing “various weapons” and burning the position, before setting fire to more than 50 houses.
On January 9, ISIS operatives machine-gunned civilians in the village of Litamanda, in the Macomia district, killing one and causing the others to flee. The operatives burned ten houses, before returning to their positions unharmed. Al-Naba’ attached an “exclusive” photo from the attack, showing an ISIS fighter shooting.
Two Civilians Killed In Muidumbe District
On January 5, ISIS operatives attacked the village of Chinda in the Muidumbe district, killing two civilians.
Issue 421 of Al-Naba’, released on December 14, 2023, published a graphically violent “exclusive” documenting a December 6 attack on a military position in Nguri, Cabo Delgado.[4] On December 7, the group claimed that on December 6 its operatives killed five soldiers in an attack on a concentration of the “Crusader” Mozambican army in the village of Negure, Muidumbe district, while on December 8 it claimed beheading an “unbeliever Christian” nearby.[5]
[1] Telegram, January 12, 2024.
[2] See MEMRI JTTM report: Islamic State (ISIS) Spokesman Instructs Muslims To Renew Lone Wolf Attacks In U.S., Europe, In Support Of Gaza; Discredits Palestinian Factions For Their Alliance With Iran, Calls On Arabs To Rebel Against Their Rulers, January 4, 2024.
[3] Telegram, January 7, 2024.
[4] See MEMRI JTTM report: Warning – GRAPHIC: Islamic State (ISIS) Weekly Claims Previously Unreported Operations In Syria, DRC; Includes New Details And ‘Exclusive’ Photos Of Attacks In Nigeria, Iraq, Philippines, Mozambique, December 17, 2023.
[5] See MEMRI JTTM report: Islamic State Mozambique Province (ISMP) Claims Killing Five Soldiers, Beheading Christian Civilian In Attack In Northern Mozambique, December 12, 2023.