In the Northern Province of Kabo-Dolga in Mozambique, militants of the Ash Shabab terrorist group associated with DeAash stole at least 120 children. This is stated in the statement of the organization Human Rights Watch (HRW).
“In the northern regions of Mozambique, at least 120 children were stolen. Some of them are forced to work, are used as a military or married,” follows from the statement.
According to HRW, kidnapped children are often forced to transfer the loot property, and some of them are involved in armed clashes as fighters.
The organization notes that over the past two months, attacks and cases of abduction of minors have become more frequent. In this regard, Mozambique authorities are designed to activate efforts to search for missing children and prevent new abductions.
Crisis in Kabu-Dolga
The Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Yang Egeland, who visited Kabu-Dolga on June 11, called the humanitarian situation in the northern part of Mozambique “Forgotten Crisis”.
“Climate shocks, outbreaks of violence and growing hunger cause a destructive blow to the population. More than 5 million people are threatened with hunger, and more than 900 thousand in a critical situation requiring immediate help,” Egeland noted.
According to NRC, in the country more than 5 million people are faced with acute food shortage, while 900 thousand of them need emergency food support.
exacerbation of violence and humanitarian crisis
Since 2017, the Mozambique government has been struggling with armed groups in the province of Kabu-Dolga. Despite support from Rwanda, South Africa and other regional partners, the authorities cannot completely take control of the situation.
In 2020, the militants made a series of cruel attacks, during which dozens of people, including children, were executed by decapitation.
According to the UN, as a result of a conflict, over 600 thousand people were forced to leave their homes. Violence spread to neighboring provinces.
The consequences of natural disasters were an additional factor in the humanitarian crisis – the province was repeatedly subjected to tropical cyclones.
In addition, exacerbates the situation and reduction of external assistance from the United States.