Zimbabwean Nyasha Mugwagwa, who was among the 12 people killed in Palma, Mozambique, when armed criminals who claim allegiance to a terrorist group — ISIS — that attacked the town, has been buried by Mozambican authorities.
Government is presently working with the Mozambique
government and companies in Palma to account for all Zimbabweans who were
working in that town when the group attacked the town.
Palma is in Cabo Delgado province and is rich in oil and
gas. Armed gangs have been escalating attacks since 2017 and it appears they
are being assisted by foreign fighters using techniques similar to those in
Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq.
The attacks have been roundly condemned by the United
Nations, which has since called for an investigation into the activities of the
terrorists in the province, which has seen several villagers including women
and children, being beheaded.
In a statement yesterday, Foreign Affairs and International
Trade Ministry Permanent Secretary Ambassador James Manzou, said emerging “eye
witness accounts” are confirming that Mr Mugwagwa worked for the Remote Site
Solution (RSS) company in Palma, and was among the 12 people killed by the
insurgents.
“The 12 have since been buried by the local authorities as
their bodies were in a state of advanced decomposition,” said Ambassador
Manzou. “Under such conditions, pathological expertise is required to identify
the bodies. The Government of Zimbabwe is therefore working with the Government
of Mozambique with a view to identifying the bodies.
“Once one of the bodies is confirmed to be that of Mr
Mugwagwa, the Government would facilitate the repatriation process.”
Ambassador Manzou appealed to all those whose beloved ones
were still missing to get in touch with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Trade on +263 24 2794681-5 or 263 24 2727 005, Consular
Department.
SADC last week convened a Double Troika Summit in
Mozambique and agreed to urgently resuscitate and capacitate its Force
Intervention Brigade (FIB) to facilitate deployment in Mozambique, which is
under siege from the terrorist gangs.
FIB was first conceived as an arm of the United Nations
Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DRC. It is composed entirely of
troops from South Africa, Tanzania and Malawi. At the key meeting, SADC
resolved to immediately deploy in Mozambique as it prepares a proportionate
regional response to terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado.
Defence ministers from Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa,
which currently make up the Troika Organ on Politics, Defence and Security
Co-operation meet on April 28 to prepare a follow-up extraordinary meeting of
the Organ Troika the following day.
A communiqué at the end of the summit said the heinous
attacks could not be allowed to continue. Terrorists attacked the coastal city
of Palma on March 24 and displaced over 11 000 people.
The exact number of people killed in the attacks, which
took place close to the multibillion-dollar gas project by French energy giant
Total, are not yet known. Herald
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