Saturday June 9, 2018
By Joe Sterling
A Mozambican woman walks in the small fishing town of Palma, envisioned as a center for liquefied natural gas development, in February 2017.
(CNN) -- The US Embassy in Mozambique has
warned of "imminent attacks" against government and commercial centers
in a northern province of the Eastern African nation and urged US
citizens to leave the area.
The warning, issued Friday, applies to
the Palma district of Cabo Delgado province, where a string of
beheadings reportedly occurred last month. The government envisions the
region as being a major industrial center for mining and the development
of liquified natural gas.
"In light of information pointing to
the likelihood of imminent attacks on government and commercial centers
in the district headquarters of Palma, Cabo Delgado Province in the
coming days, we strongly advise American citizens in the district
headquarters of Palma to consider departing the area immediately," the
US Embassy said.
"Those who elect to remain in Palma district are
strongly advised to avoid travel to the district headquarters and to
postpone visits to both government offices and retail locations,
including markets." Americans with planned travel to the district
"are strongly advised to postpone such travel," the embassy said. It
urged Americans to avoid the area, monitor local media for updates, be
aware of their surroundings and review their security plans.
According
to the Mozambique News Agency, "unidentified criminals, believed to be
Islamic fundamentalists, decapitated ten people" on May 27. The assaults
took place "against two villages in the Palma district." Police said
attackers wielding machetes beheaded people, including two teen boys.
Locals
call the group Al-Shabaab, or the "youth." Authorities are not linking
it to the Somali terror group of the same name, however.
In March,
one person in the province was killed and homes were torched, the news
agency said. Officials believe the Al-Shabaab group carried out the
assault and believe the same group has been carrying out armed
operations against the government since October.