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More than 70 children are missing following recent jihadist attacks in Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province, the authorities say.<\/p>\n
They became separated from their families as thousands fled to a neighbouring province in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
There are fears that some of them may have been kidnapped by the fighters linked to the Islamic State (IS) group.<\/p>\n
Regional troops have been helping the military tackle an insurgency involving Islamist militants that began in 2017.<\/p>\n
But the violence has spiked recently and the medical charity M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res (MSF) says 80,000 people have been displaced since January<\/a>.<\/p>\n The children were among those were fleeing over the last few weeks from Cabo Delgado’s Chi\u00f9re district to Nampula province.<\/p>\n Chi\u00f9re, in the south of Cabo Delgado, has been a relatively safe haven for those displaced over the last few years – with the violence mainly being reported in the north of the province.<\/p>\n Last week, President Filipe Nyusi said the jihadists had deliberately targeted Chi\u00f9re to abduct children.<\/p>\n There is concern they may have been placed in training camps by the militants, the private newspaper Expresso da Tarde reports.<\/p>\n It is not clear how many civilians have died in the recent violence in Chi\u00f9re – where the army says calm has now been restored.<\/p>\n Officials say the children were lost in the panic as people fled – some have been since been found, but 72 are still unaccounted for.<\/p>\n More than 60% of those displaced by the new wave of jihadist attacks are children and 129 schools have been closed, according to a UN report.<\/p>\n It is the highest number of children to be uprooted in such a short period, Save the Children says.<\/p>\n “There are repeated reports of beheadings and abductions, including multiple child victims. The conflict has already left 540,000 people displaced with more than a half of them children,” the charity said<\/a>.<\/p>\n The insurgency in the gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado, launched by the IS-linked local al-Shabab militia, is now in its seventh year.<\/p>\n High levels of poverty and disputes over access to land and jobs have contributed to local grievances.<\/p>\n <\/div>\nMore on Mozambique’s insurgency:<\/h3>\n