President Filipe Nyusi announced in a televised address that Mozambique’s military is engaged in combat against Islamist rebels who initiated a significant assault on the town of Macomia in the northern region on Friday morning.

The town is located in Cabo Delgado, a resource-abundant province in the northern region, where terrorists associated with the Islamic State initiated an armed rebellion in 2017. Despite a significant security response, there has been a notable increase in attacks since the beginning of this year.

According to two security sources, it is estimated that several hundred fighters are participating in the most recent assault.

“Macomia has been under attack since this morning. Fire exchange continues,” Nyusi said at around 1000 GMT, adding that the militants initially withdrew after about 45 minutes of fighting, but then regrouped and came back.

The attack on Friday seems to be the most severe insurgent assault in the region in quite some time. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional force, which was deployed in Mozambique in 2021, commenced its withdrawal last month as its term is set to conclude in July.

Piers Pigou, the director of the Southern Africa Programme at the Institute for Security Studies, stated that the assault on the Macomia district headquarters confirms the apprehensions regarding the emergence of a security void due to the reduction of southern African military forces.

“Claims that the province has been for the most part stabilised are not accurate,” he told journalists.

Nyusi stated that incidents of aggression are likely to occur during periods of change and expressed his optimism that the SADC forces will be able to intervene and provide assistance. It was ambiguous whether they were still stationed in the vicinity or actively participating in the conflict.

Rwanda has dispatched military personnel to Mozambique to assist in combating the insurgency.

The state electoral commission of Chad has announced that interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby has secured an absolute victory in the presidential election held on May 6, receiving more than 61% of the votes according to provisional figures. This declaration was made despite the main opposition candidate claiming victory for himself.

Chad’s military regime has successfully transitioned back to constitutional governance through democratic elections, making it the first country in West and Central Africa affected by a coup to do so. However, certain opposition parties have expressed dissatisfaction with regards to worries of electoral manipulation.

In anticipation of the results announcement, a significant number of security troops have been stationed at prominent crossroads in the capital city of N’Djamena, due to the prevailing high tensions.

Ahmed Bartichet, the head of the National Election Management Agency, announced that Deby had obtained 61.3% of the vote, surpassing the required 50% threshold to avoid a second round of voting.

According to him, Succes Masra, both Deby’s prime minister and the main opposition candidate, won 18.53% of the votes.

Before the event, Masra declared triumph during a live transmission on Facebook and urged security personnel and his followers to resist what he referred to as an endeavour to obtain the votes fraudulently.

“A small number of individuals believe they can make people believe that the election was won by the same system that has been ruling Chad for decades,” he said.

“To all Chadians who voted for change, who voted for me, I say: mobilise. Do it calmly, with a spirit of peace,” he said.
The contested outcomes conclude a tense campaign season characterized by the assassination of opposition leader Yaya Dillo, the exclusion of important opposition members from the list of candidates, and other concerns that critics argue have undermined the integrity of the process.

Although Masra attracted larger-than-anticipated audiences during the campaign, observers had largely foreseen that the winner would be Deby. Deby assumed control after rebels assassinated his father, Idriss Deby, who had ruled for a long time, in April 2021.

“Post-election protests are possible, though the threat of police repression could dissuade many people from taking to the streets,” Crisis Group experts said ahead of the vote.

Foreign observers are keenly monitoring the election. While neighbouring countries in the insurgency-ravaged Sahel area, such as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, have requested the withdrawal of Paris and other Western powers and sought backing from Moscow, Chad is the only Sahel state that still has a significant French military presence.

Security and the economy have been important topics throughout the campaign. Chad, a country with limited development, has faced additional challenges due to many factors such as heatwaves caused by climate change and a refugee problem resulting from the civil conflict in Sudan.