Mozambique

The group takes advantage of the marginalization of this region due to the fact that the population of this region feels forgotten by the government, to recruit and obtain sympathy from this population. Initially, attacks on government institutions using firearms and machetes were the main methods of operation of this group that started its attacks in October 2017, however, as the group improved, the group evolved its techniques in attacks on unarmed civilians, resorting to the use of bladed weapons as well as setting fire to residences, state institutions together with private ones. Poverty, lack of employment, both political and economic marginalization of the Cabo Delgado region, and tensions between religious, ethnic, and class groups are considered to be the main causes of the outbreak of terrorism in Cabo Delgado. In October 2017, the group began its attacks with the attack on three stations of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique where, in addition to controlling the station, it managed to gain access to government ammunition.

The attack that received the most international attention to the situation in Mozambique was the attack carried out on the palm that targeted international citizens, which led to the consequent internationalization of the conflict. As a result of this problem, more than 4000 citizens lost their lives and more than 800.000 citizens had to flee to other areas of the country and also some fled to Tanzania.

In which one considers these attacks as a part of insurgency whereas to some others, these attacks constitute acts of terrorism. Initially, in an attempt to avoid raising the attention of the international community, the Mozambican government refrained from using both the terms “insurgents” and “terrorists”. Instead, it preferred to use the terms malefactors or criminals to refer to this group. The government carried out operations in the Cabo Delgado region in an attempt to resolve the problem internally, however, due to lack of experience with the type of problem, abnormal behavior of the group when compared to other terrorist groups, lack of men or military power and adequate equipment it was unable to successfully resolve it. After the failure of the National Defense Forces, the Mozambican Government resorted to military companies such as the Russian company Wagner to solve the problem, however, due to a lack of knowledge of the region, they were at a disadvantage in relation to the insurgents, a fact that led to their failure.

After these two failures, the government decided to change its strategy and showed itself to be open to receiving international help to solve the problem, resorting to the help of Rwanda, which sent military troops to Mozambique, as well as SADC military forces, and received logistics support including troop training coming from the UN, AU, EU, USA, UK, and Portugal. The actions of the Rwandan forces allowed for some success as control of the Palmar region returned to the Government, as well as control of Mocimboa da Praia, which had been lost by the Government a year ago, was retaken. The action of the SADC forces was even more successful insofar as this, being more comprehensive, allowed the weakening of the insurgents on a large scale, kidnapped citizens were freed, etc. The better preparation and experience of these forces, as well as improved equipment, are some of the aspects that made their operations successful. Although the operations carried out by foreign forces ensured the weakening of the group, it was not enough to put a definitive end to the problem.

Terrorism or other military conflicts require more than military operations for victory in their combat. Side by side with military operations, it is necessary to operate in multiple dimensions, it is necessary to create strategies with society that prevent groups from recruiting new members, that prevent the group from moving to new places, and that allow the deradicalization of the population. Dialogue is also an aspect that in the history of Mozambique has helped to put a definitive end to conflicts and allowed the achievement of peace. History shows that it is necessary to combine forces in the fight against terrorism, not depending only on the use of military force since, unlike wars in antiquity, whereby military means the enemy was annihilated and defeated, terrorism appears differently. Terrorism takes advantage of existing problems in society to "be born, feed itself, grow and expand". For this it is necessary to use democracy to fight against this evil, seeking to understand within the affected society who were the facilitators of this evil and together with society through public policies to fight each one of them independently. Through this, it is possible to win the war on terrorism.

Mozambique experienced a significant increase in terrorist activity in 2019. ISIS’s affiliate in Mozambique carried out numerous attacks in northern Mozambique and Tanzania, resulting in the estimated deaths of 350 civilians and the internal displacement of 100,000 people. The Government of the Republic of Mozambique continued security operations against the ISIS-affiliated group in 2019 and made numerous arrests of terrorist suspects. In June 2019, ISIS began claiming responsibility for attacks. Reports indicate that from September to November 2019, Russia provided operational support for government-led CT operations.

With some exceptions, the ISIS affiliate in Mozambique reportedly attacks rural areas in Mozambique's northern Cabo Delgado province on a weekly or more frequent basis. Attacks varied in intensity and scale, but commonly involved firearms, knives, and arson. The attacks often included the theft of food and other essential goods, and at least 100,000 people were forced to flee. In 2019, the Islamic State affiliate in Mozambique not only carried out attacks on civilians but also stepped up attacks on security forces and vehicles. The report said fighters associated with ISIS affiliates in Mozambique often wear stolen police uniforms or military uniforms. Restricted access and limited coverage of the violence make it difficult to verify reports of attacks. This group was originally founded for religious reasons. As mentioned above, it has been noted that there is no consensus on their identity, as evidenced by the existence of different names for the same group. For some authors this group is called al-Shabaab, for others, al-Sunnah wal Jama'a and the Islamic State of Central African Province (ISCA or ISCAP) also developed and developed at the military level. Their main source of income is the trade in rubies and other gemstones, as well as donations from domestic and international supporters.