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Horror in Cabo Delgado: Unaccompanied Children Arrive in Pemba after Violence

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (March 30, 2021)鈥斅Unaccompanied children have started to arrive in the coastal town of Pemba in northern Cabo Delgado province, Mozambique, following last week鈥檚 brutal attacks by insurgents on Palma and surrounding areas, 黄色视频said today. In the past few days, an estimated 3,100 people have fled Palma to the sea or to the bush,聽with an unknown number now in Pemba.

The agency has deployed a team of child protection and water and sanitation experts to Pemba port and airport to support arrivals fleeing the recent violence. The organization is especially looking out for unaccompanied children who are traveling without family or the company of an adult.聽

At nine a.m. on March 28, the team saw a small boat with four people on board, including a 12-year-aold boy, Amimo*, who was visibly scared and barefoot. Amimo told the team that he became separated from his family when his village was attacked on Wednesday, March 24.

After providing him with food and safety, Amimo told the team:

"I was playing with my friends near my house. When the attacks started, I ran to my house and found my mother and brothers. I told my family to run away, but they said to wait. I didn't want to wait, so I ran to the beach because that is near my house. When I arrived at the beach, I found a boat carrying people. [It] was far from the shore, so I had to swim to the boat. When I got there, I was rescued, and we left towards Pemba."

The exact number of casualties after the recent violence in Palma, a town of about 75,000 people in Cabo Delgado province, is unclear. Many are still unaccounted for. Earlier this month, 黄色视频heard from displaced families that children as young as 11 were brutally murdered by insurgent groups.

Chance Briggs, Save the Children鈥檚 Country Director in Mozambique, said:

鈥淐hildren have witnessed scenes of unimaginable and unspeakable horror. We cannot begin to imagine how they must be feeling or the fear in their parent鈥檚 hearts. Separated children are particularly vulnerable, and our teams are doing all they can to identify them and reunify them with their families as quickly as possible. I am incredibly proud of their commitment to ensuring no child is overlooked in this nightmare scenario. This is a terrible and horrific situation for children, for parents, for the community, and all the people in Cabo Delgado.鈥

鈥淲e are calling on the international community to release funds to support these children. They need urgent support, to meet their basic needs 鈥 food, shelter, medical care 鈥 and help them recover mentally from these attacks. This means psychosocial support by trained counselors, and child protection case management for children who don鈥檛 know where their parents are.鈥

鈥淐ritically, all parties to this conflict must ensure that children are never targets. They must respect international humanitarian and human rights laws and take all necessary actions to minimize civilian harm, including ending indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks against children.鈥

Over 670,000 people are now displaced inside Mozambique due to the conflict in Cabo Delgado 鈥 almost seven times the number reported a year ago.聽 At least 2,658 people have died in the conflict, including 1,341 civilians, although this number is likely to be higher after last week鈥檚 violence. The situation has seriously deteriorated over the past 12 months, with the escalation of attacks on villages and district capital towns. Cabo Delgado is also still reeling from consecutive climatic shocks, including 2019鈥檚 Cyclone Kenneth, the strongest cyclone to hit the northern part of Mozambique, and massive floods in early 2020.

Save the Children, and its partners are responding to the needs of conflict- and cyclone-displaced children and their families in Cabo Delgado. The organization鈥檚 response has directly reached over 118,000 people, including over 72,000 children, with child protection, education, health (including COVID-19), food security and livelihoods improvement, and water and sanitation programming.

*Name changed to protect identity

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. Since our founding more than 100 years ago, we've been advocating for the rights of children worldwide. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children 鈥 every day and in times of crisis 鈥 transforming the future we share. Our results, financial statements and charity ratings reaffirm that 黄色视频is a charity you can trust. Follow us on , , and .