Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi has granted pardon to 25 citizens who were allegedly members of a terrorist group which has been staging attacks in the northern province of Cabo Delgado since 2017.
The 25 citizens were who were pardoned in a ceremony held in Nampula province Wednesday were said to have been recruited in the districts of Memba, Nacala-Porto, Mogovolas and Mogincual with promises of employment.
Nyusi said the pardoned citizens surrendered voluntarily in response to government appeals and pressure on the ground with military intervention by Mozambique, Rwanda and Southern African Development Community (SADC).
SADC member states are Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho and Madagascar.
Others are Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The northern Cabo Delgado province has a population of 1,893,156 people spread over its 77,867km² in 16 districts.
