South Africa to Quadruple Mozambique Deployment as SADC Converts to Peacekeeping Force

Due to neoliberal reforms triggered by International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan terms, Mozambique lacks the budget to support an armed force capable of pacifying the Islamist rebels in the north, forcing it to contract unreliable mercenaries and appeal to other nations for help, including Portugal, against which it fought a long independence war.

The leaders of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) states agreed at a Tuesday virtual summit to “de-escalate” and transition from a rapid intervention force to a peacekeeping force in Mozambique.

However, according to South African news outlet Daily Maverick, the conversion to peacekeeping will see South Africa quadruple the size of its deployment in its eastern neighbor, from 300 special forces and support staff to roughly 1,280 troops.

SADC deployed the 3,000-strong brigade to Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province in July 2021 following an appeal for help by Mozambican President Felipe Nyusi. That April, the coastal city of Palma had been attacked by Islamist rebel movement Al-Sunna wa Jama’a, known locally as al-Shabab, although it is not affiliated with the Somali group* of the same name. However, al-Shabab has declared its allegiance to Daesh*, although it’s unclear how substantial it is.

Al-Shabab’s rebellion has grown since 2017, and is closely linked to local unrest sparked by several massive gas facilities being built by multinational petroleum corporations along the coast, as well as a highly exploitative ruby mining industry in the interior.

Parallel to the SADC deployment, Rwanda also sent 2,000 troops to Cabo Delgado under special invitation by Maputo.

Botswana's President Mokgweetsi Masisi sends off troops to Mozambique as part of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Standby Force at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in Gaborone, Botswana, July 26, 2021. The Botswana Defence Force (BDF) will provide regional support to the Republic of Mozambique to combat the looming threat of terrorism and acts of violent extremism in the Cabo Delgado region, as an element of the SADC Mission in Mozambique. A total of 296 BDF soldiers will be deployed in Mozambique, and 70 of them departed on Monday.

© Tshekiso Tebalo/Xinhua

South African Defense Force chief Rudzani Maphwanya said Tuesday that the SADC force, SAMIM, “met strong resistance from the terrorists, but were able to inflict fatal casualties and disrupt activities, as well as continue to dominate and pursue the terrorists in the operational area.”

"We strongly believe that if we do not curb the scourge of terrorism and nip it in the bud whilst it's still on the other side, eventually it will affect the entire region,” he said, according to Africa News.

However, with al-Shabab pulling into inland Niassa province and establishing a new base of operations, the possibility of a quick victory has evaporated. Analysts have long warned that Maputo will have to respond to the deeper social roots of the unrest fueling the rebellion if they want to pacify the country’s impoverished north.

"We must create conditions for the people of Mozambique to start picking up where things have fallen between the cracks and start going on with their lives, so governance aspects must also be strengthened because the problem cannot be resolved purely by means of the military," Maphwanya added.

The insurgency has killed more than 3,000 people and displaced 800,000 people, while leaving more than 1 million in dire need of food aid. However, in February, the United Nations opened an investigation of allegations that officials in northern Mozambique forced women to give them sexual favors in return for food distribution.

*Al-Shabab, Daesh (IS/ISIL/ISIS) - terrorist groups banned in Russia and many other countries