Between wealth and poverty

Far from the public eye, violence is escalating in the East African country of Mozambique. The jihadist insurgency also has a maritime dimension.

At the end of March 2021, jihadist fighters linked to the Islamic State attacked the coastal town of Palma in northern Mozambique. According to media reports, several dozen people were killed during several days of fighting around the city of 75,000 inhabitants. The media response that followed the events in Palma brought global public attention to a conflict that has been characterised by violence since 2017 for the first time on a large scale. Since then, the clashes in the country have increasingly escalated. It is estimated that more than 2,800 people have lost their lives so far. The number of internally displaced persons is estimated at 750,000. In addition to a further escalation of violence, which the recent fighting around Palma reflects, it also highlights the maritime dimension of the jihadist insurgency in Mozambique.

Poverty and corruption

Mozambique, which is located in the southern part of the African continent and has a population of around 31 million, only gained its independence in 1975 after centuries of colonial rule by Portugal. Mozambique borders Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Eswatini (Swaziland until 2018) to the north, west and south. In the east, Mozambique stretches for around 2,500 kilometres along the Indian Ocean.
The jihadist insurgency in Mozambique has so far mainly centred on northern Mozambique, particularly the coastal province of Cabo Delgado. This is also where the violent riots began in 2017, when armed fighters attacked police forces in Mocimboa da Praia. The jihadists subsequently expanded their activities to other districts in Cabo Delgado and northern Mozambique, increasingly improving their capabilities in the process. In the course of the armed conflict to date, there has been a recognisable shift from initial hit-and-run operations to more sophisticated operations in which the jihadists were also able to control larger areas in the north of the country, at least temporarily.