Mozambique and Rwanda troops recapture town from Islamic State-tied group

Troops from Mozambique and Rwanda have captured the port town at the heart of an nearly four-year insurgency that has halted a $20 billion project by TotalEnergies SE.

The two countries’ soldiers retook Mocimboa da Praia, Mozambique, which insurgents with ties to Islamic State have held for a year, the Rwanda Defence Force said in a post to its Twitter account on Sunday.

The joint forces are in control, and operations continue “with the aim of consolidating control over areas that are critical,” Mozambique army spokesman Omar Saranga told reporters in Maputo, the capital.

The victory signals a potential turning point in a conflict that’s left more than 3,200 people dead and displaced another 800,000.

It could be a step toward restoring the level of peace and stability in the region that TotalEnergies says it requires to resume work on its liquefied natural gas project about 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of Mocimboa da Praia, Africa’s biggest private investment.

From their base in Mocimboa da Praia, more than 100 IS-linked fighters raided the nearby town of Palma, near the LNG project, in March, prompting TotalEnergies to halt work.

Since Rwanda sent about 1,000 security forces to help fight the insurgency last month, Mozambique has been carrying out major counter-offensive operations, claiming the deaths of dozens of the rebels.

Troops from the 16-member Southern African Development Community have also been deployed, which could further add to the government’s recent momentum in the fight.

Source: BNN Bloomberg