US, Britain and others condemn escalating violence

28/11/2024 6:08

        The governments of the
        United States, Britain, Canada, Norway, and Switzerland on
        Wednesday jointly condemned the escalating violence against
        civilians in Mozambique, a southern African nation currently
        embroiled in weeks of post-election protests.
        
        "We call on the Government of Mozambique to uphold the role
        of security forces to protect the people of Mozambique," the
        countries said in a joint statement.
        
        Public outrage has surged after last month's disputed
        election results, which sparked protests from opposition
        supporters.
        
        The opposition is contesting what they say is a fraudulent
        victory by Frelimo, the party that has governed Mozambique since
        1975.
        
        The election result saw Frelimo extend its five-decade rule
        with its candidate, Daniel Chapo, succeeding President Filipe
        Nyusi to become Mozambique's fifth president since its
        independence from Portugal.
        
        Footage obtained by Reuters and shared on social media on
        Wednesday showed an armoured vehicle ploughing through a crowd
        of protesters in the capital, Maputo, hitting a woman.
        
        In response to the incident, Mozambique's army released a
        statement expressing deep regret over the accident, saying that
        the vehicle that was part of a properly marked convoy
        "accidentally ran over a citizen".
        
        The embassies of the five countries have called for an
        investigation into the incident.
        
        Local monitoring group Plataforma Decide said last week at
        least 67 people were killed due to the unrest between
        mid-October and mid-November.