SADC extends force mission in Mozambique for 3 months to fight terrorism

LILONGWE, Malawi

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) decided to extend its force mission in Mozambique (SAMIM) for three months to provide military support in fighting terrorism in the country’s northern region, Mozambique’s state radio RM has reported.

The decision was announced by the Chairperson of the SADC’s Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cyril Ramaphosa, on Wednesday in Lilongwe, Malawi, where the regional bloc held an extraordinary summit and reviewed its mission’s progress in Mozambique, according to the report.

“I would like to express my appreciation and commend SAMIM for its work on the ground, as well as recognize the member states that have supported this work financially and in the deployment of personnel and equipment,” the report quoted Ramaphosa as addressing the summit.

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SADC cannot allow terrorism to spread to other provinces in Mozambique and to the region, and it is imperative to promote a spirit of unity among member countries as terrorism and violent extremism threaten the stability and development that the region has achieved over the past four decades, says the report.

The RM report says that a plan for socio-economic restoration of the affected region and humanitarian support to the population has also been discussed at the summit.