MOZAMBIQUE – Officials confirmed that twelve people were killed on Monday and an Islamic state group claimed responsibility for the attacks, but experts doubt the claims.
According to a local official, ten of the people were killed in the village of Mbau, in Mocimbao da Praia district, and half homes in the area were burned down along with the offices of the ruling Frelimo party
The official, Assane Issa, said:“They entered the village and came across a group of young people who were drinking alcohol. Many were killed.
“The villagers then fled into the forest.”
A villager also said earlier on Monday jihadists attacked the village of Mindumbe, in the South of Mozambique.
“The rebels came across two men in their fields — they killed them and then decapitated them,” said the villager.
For nearly two years, Northern Mozambique, has suffered from attacks by a shadowy jihadist organisation.
An estimated 300 civilians have been killed and thousands fled their homes.
The presidential, legislative and provincial elections will take place on 15 October.
