Iran Press/Africa: Protests erupted across at least four regions of the East African nation following the Constitutional Council’s confirmation of results from the October 9 General Election. The ruling Frelimo Party secured 65% of the vote, according to official figures, but the outcome has been fiercely contested by Venancio Mondlane, leader of the opposition Podemos movement. Mondlane, who claims he won the poll despite his party officially garnering 24%, has since fled the country and called for mass demonstrations.
These calls have spurred unrest, with youth-led protests escalating into violent clashes with security forces. Last month, South Africa was forced to temporarily close its border with Mozambique after demonstrators torched vehicles on the Mozambican side, raising alarms in Pretoria over the potential spillover of unrest.
In response, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa sent Dr. Sydney Mufamadi, a seasoned diplomat and former Safety and Security Minister, to Maputo for urgent talks aimed at easing tensions. Meanwhile, South African authorities have ramped up border security operations.
“Both nations are leveraging their strong diplomatic ties to ensure that appropriate measures are implemented to restore order and enhance security in affected regions,” said Deputy National Commissioner Tebello Mosikili.
The chaos has been further exacerbated by a mass prison break in Maputo, where at least 6,000 inmates escaped from a high-security facility last week during the height of the protests. Adding to the crisis, over 13,000 Mozambicans have fled to neighboring Malawi, a number that continues to grow.
Mozambique’s northern Cabo Delgado province has already been battling a decade-long insurgency led by the so-called Islamic State’s Central Africa Province (ISCAP), a group linked to the Islamic State’s efforts to establish a caliphate in Iraq and Syria. This insurgency has destabilized significant parts of the country and posed an ongoing threat to the central government.
The European Union has also weighed in on the crisis. Its Election Observer Mission (EU EOM) flagged “irregularities” in vote counting and accused officials of “unjustified” alterations to the results. In a statement, the EU pledged support for electoral reforms, underscoring its willingness to assist Mozambique in building a more transparent democratic process.
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