Hotel attack in Mozambique: Brit missing after terrorist attack killed dozens
A British man is missing after leaving a hotel in Mozambique that was heavily attacked by militants.
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Islamic State said Monday it was behind the ambush in the northern city of Mozambique, in which dozens of people, including foreign workers, were killed.
Sky News understands that British contractor Philip Mawer had been at the Amarula Hotel in the city of Palma at the time of the attack on Wednesday, but had joined a convoy of vehicles trying to escape on Friday afternoon.
A spokesman for his employer RA International said: “Of our total staff, eight people were in Palma city at the time of the attack, with seven Mozambican employees at the RA office and a British citizen at the Amarula Hotel.
“On Sunday afternoon, we located the seven local employees, but there is still no citizen in the UK.
“We are working with the authorities to try to establish what has happened, and we are working to support the family of the missing employee.
“All our thoughts are with them at this very difficult time.”
Islamic State fighters claim to have taken control of the city after days of clashes with security forces, saying it had killed at least 55 people including soldiers, destroyed buildings and seized vehicles.
Witnesses described seeing violent warriors and corpses in the streets, some of whom were beheaded.
Mr. Mawer, a graduate of Bournemouth University, worked as Business Development Manager for RA International.
With more than 20 years of experience working in “challenging environments”, he had previously worked in Somalia, wider Africa and throughout the Middle East, including Yemen.
The Mozambican government said security forces were working to restore order in Palma, which is adjacent to a $ 60 billion gas project. Led by oil companies including Total.
The province of Cabo Delgado, where Palma is located, has been the target of a smoldering Islamist uprising since 2017, and the attack on the city came just hours after Total announced the resumption of work at its site after stopping them due to security issues.
James Duddridge MP, Minister of Africa, condemned the violence as “shocking”.
He added: “It must stop. We stand with the people of Mozambique against terrorism.
“We contact British people in the region to provide support and update our travel advice regularly.”
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