Over 30 Christians Beheaded as Islamic State-Linked Terrorists Intensify Attacks in Northern Mozambique

by Emmitt Barry, with reporting from Washington D.C. Bureau Staff

PEMBA, MOZAMBIQUE (Worthy News) – More than 30 Christians have been brutally executed in northern Mozambique in a wave of attacks carried out by Islamic State-affiliated terrorists targeting Christian villages, churches, and homes, according to local reports and monitoring groups.

The Islamic State Mozambique Province (ISMP) released a 20-image photoset this week showing graphic executions, shootings, and widespread arson in the provinces of Cabo Delgado and Nampula, MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute) reported.

The terrorists claimed responsibility for multiple attacks throughout the final week of September. These included the beheading of two Christians in Chiure-Velho, the burning of several churches in Chiure District, and a raid in Nacocha village that left one Christian shot dead and two churches destroyed. In Macomia Town, militants killed four Christians and looted homes before retreating.

ISMP’s campaign of terror continued across northern Mozambique as the group assaulted Nakioto village in Nampula Province, torching over 100 Christian homes and one church, and later destroying another church and 10 homes in nearby Minhanha village.

Residents described scenes of horror. “The gunmen came around 8 p.m., killing four and taking four others, including a woman and her two daughters,” one survivor told The Defense Post. Another witness said a young man was shot for refusing to surrender his father’s possessions.

The ongoing violence has displaced tens of thousands, leading Mozambique and Rwanda to strengthen their joint counterinsurgency efforts. In late August, Mozambican Defense Minister Cristóvão Artur Chume and his Rwandan counterpart, Juvenal Marizamunda, signed an agreement extending Rwandan military operations in Cabo Delgado.

Security analysts say ISMP expanded its activity into six districts in September, ranging from Balama to Mocímboa da Praia, where militants conducted a rare door-to-door assault identifying victims. Despite earlier reports that their ranks had shrunk from 2,500 to 280 fighters, ISMP has maintained its propaganda campaign and territorial presence.

Rwandan troops, first deployed in 2021, continue to support Mozambique in efforts to retake villages and secure highways. Yet, Mozambique’s defense officials recently acknowledged that operations have struggled to contain insurgent advances along key routes such as the Macomia–Awasse highway.

Humanitarian organizations have been forced to suspend work amid the escalating violence. Doctors Without Borders halted operations in Mocímboa da Praia and launched emergency aid missions for tens of thousands displaced in Chiure. The UN migration agency reported that over 46,000 people were uprooted within just eight days in July—nearly 60% of them children.

Since the insurgency began in 2017, over 6,200 people have been killed, and more than one million displaced, according to United Nations estimates. The unrest also forced the suspension of TotalEnergies’ $20 billion natural gas project near Palma in 2021 after militants stormed the area, killing more than 800 people.

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