According to a source from the Local Force (paramilitary), the rebels carried out the attack at around 18:00 (16:00 in Lisbon) on the headquarters of the Muaguide post, where they wounded a Mozambican police officer, destroyed the house of the head of the post and looted medicines from the local health centre.
‘They burnt down the palace there, the police station, wounded a member of the police and looted medicines from the health centre,’ said a member of the Local Force on condition of anonymity.
The terrorists then moved on to the community of Mariria, about a kilometre from Meluco HQ, where they looted necessities from two shacks and burnt down two homes.
‘They looted goods from two shacks and burnt down two houses, but there was no loss of life,’ said the source.
After the attack, the people of Muaguide left the village and walked 50 kilometres to the town of Meluco.
Since October 2017, the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado has been facing an armed rebellion with attacks claimed by movements associated with the extremist group Islamic State.
The last major attack took place on 10 and 11 May on the district headquarters of Macomia, with around a hundred insurgents sacking the town, causing several deaths and heavy fighting with the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and Rwandan soldiers, who are supporting Mozambique in the fight against the rebels.
