Upon arrival on Thursday 22nd 2024, the President was welcomed by the RDF Army Chief of Staff (ACOS), Maj Gen Vincent Nyakarundi who is in Cabo Delgado province for a tour of duty.
The RDF Army Chief of Staff was flanked by RSF Commander Maj Gen Kagame, RSF Police Component Comd and staff officers.
In his remarks, the president commended the work done by RSF and FADM in pacifying the district and called on them to maintain momentum in halting the terrorists’ activities southwards.
The ACOS briefed the Force on the Security Situation back home and requested the Force to remain focused and committed to their mission.
Rwanda started the deployment of 1000 troops of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) and the Rwanda National Police (RNP) to Mozambique on 9th July 2021, to fight terrorist groups, honoring the request of Mozambique. The troops had increased to nearly 2500 by the end of the year 2022.
The situation in the country had worsened since October 2017 when armed extremists launched an insurgency in the Cabo Delgado Province of Mozambique.
Mozambique Defence Armed Forces battled the extremists but many civilians were killed and displaced by the fighting.
Before Rwandan troops’ intervention, terrorists had killed 3000 civilians while more than 800,000 were displaced. The insecurity had also put to halt all development projects in the area controlled by insurgents.
The joint operations between Rwandan and Mozambican troops yielded big, where different regions were seized from rebels and subsequently led to the return of thousands of displaced people.
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