52 detained over deadly police station attacks

Police in Mozambique have detained 52 people after a string of attacks on police stations, in which 14 attackers were shot dead. Two policemen were also killed. The authorities also backed down from an earlier claim that the gunmen were linked to homegrown ‘Islamic extremist sects’, saying there was no terror group connection. A report on the News24 site notes that the attacks occurred the week before last in the sleepy town of Mocimboa de Praia in the north of the country near the border with Tanzania, where three police stations were targeted. ‘This is a wake-up call for Mozambique and unless inequality and youth unemployment and education is improved, we may see more of this,’ said analyst Alex Vines.