MAPUTO: Mozambique has admitted for the first time the presence of Daesh militants in the country amid escalating attacks in the gas-rich Cabo Delgado northern province, according to a statement seen Friday.
The public acknowledgement came just days after police reported a “massacre” of 52 villagers who had refused to be recruited into the ranks of the shadowy group that has terrorized the region’s villages and towns for more than two years.
The National Council for Defense and Security, the state body that advises President Filipe Nyusi on security matters, blamed the attacks to Daesh.
The council analyzed the situation of the attacks in the province of Cabo Delgado and concluded that they were committed by Daesh, a terrorist organization.
It “reveals that we are dealing with external aggression,” it said in an emailed statement.
Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP), affiliated with the Daesh group, has claimed some of the attacks in the region since last June posting images of slain soldiers and seized weapons.
In recent weeks the fighters have unmasked themselves, openly declaring their campaign to establish an extremist caliphate in the gas-rich region.
They have been scaling up their attacks, seizing government buildings, blocking roads and temporarily hoisting their black-and-white extremist flag over towns and villages across the province.
But police have refused to comment on the attacks and on rare occasions would do so, attributing the attacks to “criminals or illegal miners.”
Police spokesman Orlando Mudumane this week revealed that the militants had beheaded and shot the 52 murdered villagers on April 7 after they refused to be recruited.
The attacks in Cabo Delgado started in 2017 in the small town of Mocimboa da Praia and have now spread to seven districts, or about a third of the province’s territory, according to police chief Bernardino Rafael.
More 900 people have been killed, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
The unrest has forced more than 200,000 locals to flee and raised concern among energy giants operating in the gas-rich region.
Locally the group members are known as Al-Shabab, although they have no known links to the ruthless extremist group of that name operating in Somalia.
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Mozambique admits presence of Daesh fighters for first time
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Mozambique admits presence of Daesh fighters for first time
- The council analyzed the situation of the attacks in the province of Cabo Delgado and concluded that they were committed by Daesh
- In recent weeks the fighters have unmasked themselves, openly declaring their campaign to establish an extremist caliphate in the gas-rich region
India’s prime minister says it has reached a free trade deal with the EU
- It touches a whopping 2 billion people and is one of the biggest bilateral engagements on commerce
- The timing comes as Washington targets both India and the EU with steep import tariffs
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday that India and the European Union have reached a free trade agreement to deepen their economic and strategic ties.
The accord, which touches a whopping 2 billion people, was concluded after nearly two decades of negotiations. It was dubbed the “mother of all deals” by both sides.
It is one of the biggest bilateral engagements on commerce. The timing comes as Washington targets both India and the EU with steep import tariffs.
“This agreement will bring major opportunities for the people of India and Europe. It represents 25 percent of the global GDP and one-third of global trade,” Modi said while virtually addressing an energy conference.
The deal comes at a time when Washington is targeting both India and the EU with steep tariffs, disrupting established trade flows and pushing major economies to seek alternate partnerships.
Modi was scheduled to meet with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen later Tuesday to jointly announce the agreement.
India has stepped up efforts to diversify its export destinations as part of a broader strategy to offset the impact of higher US tariffs.
The tariffs include an extra 25 percent levy on Indian goods for its unabated purchases of discounted Russian oil, bringing the combined tariffs imposed by the United States on its ally to 50 percent.
The deal gives the EU expanded access to one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies, helping European exporters and investors to reduce their reliance on more volatile markets.
Bilateral trade between India and EU stood at $136.5 billion in 2024-25. The two sides hope to increase that to about $200 billion by 2030, India’s Trade Ministry officials said.
“Ultimately, the agreement is about creating a stable commercial corridor between two major markets at a time the global trading system is fragmenting,” said Indian trade analyst Ajay Srivastava.
The EU is still reeling from the aggressive approach of its once-stalwart ally across the Atlantic. There’s a widespread sense of betrayal across the 27-nation bloc from US President Donald Trump’s onslaught of higher tariffs, embrace of far-right parties, and belligerence over Greenland.
Brussels has accelerated its outreach to markets around the world: Over the past year, von der Leyen has signed deals with Japan, Indonesia, Mexico, and South America under the catchphrase “strategic autonomy,” which in practice is akin to decoupling from a US seen by most European leaders as erratic.
“We are showing a fractured world that another way is possible,” she posted on X after arriving in India on Sunday.
The accord, which touches a whopping 2 billion people, was concluded after nearly two decades of negotiations. It was dubbed the “mother of all deals” by both sides.
It is one of the biggest bilateral engagements on commerce. The timing comes as Washington targets both India and the EU with steep import tariffs.
“This agreement will bring major opportunities for the people of India and Europe. It represents 25 percent of the global GDP and one-third of global trade,” Modi said while virtually addressing an energy conference.
The deal comes at a time when Washington is targeting both India and the EU with steep tariffs, disrupting established trade flows and pushing major economies to seek alternate partnerships.
Modi was scheduled to meet with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen later Tuesday to jointly announce the agreement.
India has stepped up efforts to diversify its export destinations as part of a broader strategy to offset the impact of higher US tariffs.
The tariffs include an extra 25 percent levy on Indian goods for its unabated purchases of discounted Russian oil, bringing the combined tariffs imposed by the United States on its ally to 50 percent.
The deal gives the EU expanded access to one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies, helping European exporters and investors to reduce their reliance on more volatile markets.
Bilateral trade between India and EU stood at $136.5 billion in 2024-25. The two sides hope to increase that to about $200 billion by 2030, India’s Trade Ministry officials said.
“Ultimately, the agreement is about creating a stable commercial corridor between two major markets at a time the global trading system is fragmenting,” said Indian trade analyst Ajay Srivastava.
The EU is still reeling from the aggressive approach of its once-stalwart ally across the Atlantic. There’s a widespread sense of betrayal across the 27-nation bloc from US President Donald Trump’s onslaught of higher tariffs, embrace of far-right parties, and belligerence over Greenland.
Brussels has accelerated its outreach to markets around the world: Over the past year, von der Leyen has signed deals with Japan, Indonesia, Mexico, and South America under the catchphrase “strategic autonomy,” which in practice is akin to decoupling from a US seen by most European leaders as erratic.
“We are showing a fractured world that another way is possible,” she posted on X after arriving in India on Sunday.
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