MOZAMBIQUE JIHADISTS BEHEAD CHRISTIANS AS 128,000 FLEE ISLAMIC STATE TERROR
A renewed surge of extremist violence has torn through northern Mozambique, leaving several Christians dead, entire communities uprooted, and local church leaders warning that the humanitarian crisis is entering a dangerous new phase.
Bishop Alberto Vera of Nacala confirmed to the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need that at least four Christians were killed in recent attacks across Nampula province, one of them beheaded, as armed jihadist factions swept through rural districts beginning November 10.
Villages were torched, families fled into surrounding forests, and homes and schools were left in ruins.
"It was a week of terror and much suffering," Bishop Vera told ACN News. "Terror is in the whole district of Memba and also in the north and east of the district of Eráti. Memba is now a deserted city."
Local authorities say the most severe assaults were concentrated around Mazula over November 14 to 17, with additional attacks recorded in neighboring Chipene and Baixo Pinda.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, homes and belongings were ransacked and looted, buildings burned, and civilians left dead, wounded, or abducted.
Around 128,000 people fled in a single week from villages along the Memba Cabo Delgado border, Lúrio and Mazula, many seeking refuge in overcrowded camps in Metuge and other safer towns, according to UN estimations.
The attacks mark the latest escalation in an insurgency that has plagued northern Mozambique since 2017. More than 6,000 people have died and over a million have been uprooted since the conflict began.
Much of the violence has been perpetrated by militants aligned with the Islamic State.
Last month, a coordinated series of attacks in Chiúre District left at least 20 Christians dead, 1,300 homes destroyed, and nearly 2,000 people displaced. Two churches were burned to the ground.
Residents say the violence worsened after Mozambique's Defence and Security Forces briefly confronted the militants but later withdrew, leaving villages exposed to further attacks.
Church leaders report that extremist groups continue to abduct women and children, a recurring tactic in the eight year conflict. They are critical about the lack of interest from the international community.
Local Christians face tightening restrictions on information access. Authorities have barred photography and limited press visits to affected districts, meaning many attacks go unreported and survivors receive little follow up assistance.
Open Doors ranks Mozambique 37th on its 2025 World Watch List of countries most dangerous for Christians. Over 100 churches have been attacked or forced to close this year, and at least 56 Christians have been killed because of their faith.
THE CRUSADER'S OPINION
One Christian beheaded.
Three more murdered.
128,000 people forced to flee in seven days.
Over 100 churches attacked this year alone.
This is Islamic State terrorism in Africa, and the world yawns.
Six thousand dead since 2017.
A million displaced.
The Mozambican military confronts terrorists then withdraws, leaving Christian villages defenseless.
This is state sanctioned massacre through negligence.
Where is NATO?
Where is the UN peacekeeping force?
Where are the humanitarian interventions the West loves to promise?
The Islamic State operates openly in Mozambique, beheading Christians, burning churches, abducting women and children.
The same ideology that murdered thousands in Syria and Iraq now operates with total impunity in southern Africa.
And Mozambican authorities ban photographers and restrict press access to hide the carnage.
When governments cover up genocide, they become complicit in it.
Bishop Vera begs for prayers and international means.
He should be demanding airstrikes and special forces.
You cannot dialogue with men who behead Christians and burn churches.
You can only destroy them.
TAKE ACTION
- Support displaced Mozambican Christians through Aid to the Church in Need, providing emergency relief to the 128,000 refugees fleeing Islamic State violence. Donate at acnuk.org or call +44 (0)20 8642 8668 for direct assistance to Bishop Vera's relief efforts.
- Demand international intervention by contacting your MP via parliament.uk/get-involved. Press for UN peacekeeping forces and Western military support to eliminate Islamic State militants operating in Cabo Delgado and Nampula provinces.
- Fund Open Doors emergency response for Mozambican Christians facing persecution. Visit opendoorsuk.org or call +44 (0)1993 460015 to provide medical care, food, and shelter for families whose homes were destroyed in recent attacks.
- Contact the Mozambican Embassy in London demanding military protection for Christian communities and an end to press restrictions covering jihadist attacks. Call +44 (0)20 7383 3800 or email london@mozambiquehighcommission.org.uk to pressure authorities for transparency and action.
- Support Barnabas Fund's Mozambique crisis appeal providing practical aid to the over one million displaced by eight years of Islamic insurgency. Donate at barnabasfund.org or call +44 (0)1793 610010 for emergency relief.
- Pray for Bishop Alberto Vera and the Christians of Memba, Eráti, Mazula, and Chiúre districts. Contact Release International at releaseinternational.org or +44 (0)1689 823491 to join coordinated prayer networks for Mozambican believers under Islamic State persecution.
