At least 120 children kidnapped by rebels in Mozambique
At least 120 children have been abducted by jihadist rebels in northern Mozambique in recent days, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday, warning that kidnappings are on the rise in the country’s restive Cabo Delgado province.
The children are being used by an Islamic State-linked group known locally as al-Shabab to carry loot, perform forced labor, and some are even forced to serve as child soldiers or be married, according to the Associated Press.
Mozambique has been fighting Islamist armed rebels in Cabo Delgado province since 2017. Mozambique’s government forces have struggled to contain the violence and have relied on troops sent by Rwanda, South Africa and other regional partners.
In 2020, the insurgents launched a series of attacks that beheaded dozens of people, including children. Witnesses said children abducted from towns and villages were used as fighters in subsequent attacks.
The violence has displaced more than 600,000 people and spread to neighboring provinces, according to the United Nations. Human Rights Watch said attacks and child abductions have increased again in the past two months, and called on the Mozambican government to do more to find missing children and prevent further abductions.
Last year, Mozambique’s long and deadly post-election protests overshadowed Cabo Delgado’s problems. The province has also been hit by a number of tropical cyclones and foreign aid cuts by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), visited Cabo Delgado this month and described northern Mozambique as a neglected crisis.
“Climate shocks, escalating violence and widespread hunger are having a terrible impact on the people there,” Egeland said.
More than 5 million people are at risk of severe hunger, with more than 900,000 in a state of emergency, the NRC said.
