Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries have begun withdrawing their military units from Mozambique, where they have been stationed to combat terrorist groups.
Botswana was the first to withdraw its troops this month. Units from other SADC countries, including Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Lesotho, Malawi, Tanzania, and South Africa, are also deployed in northern Mozambique. The full withdrawal of SADC troops from Mozambique is expected to be completed by July.
Besides the stabilization of the situation in northern Mozambique, one of the reasons for the withdrawal of the SADC contingent was the shortage of financial resources to maintain it, according to Verónica Nataniel Macamo Dlhovo, Mozambique's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.
Since 2021, military units from SADC nations have been stationed in northern Mozambique to help the government fight terrorism in the region.
The northernmost gas-rich province of Mozambique, Cabo Delgado, have been suffering from the activities of the terrorist groups Ansar al-Sunna and ISCAP (an affiliate of Daesh*), trying to take control of the area for several years.
*Daesh, also known as ISIL/ISIS/IS, is a terrorist group outlawed in Russia and many other countries.