The UN warned Tanzania to accept asylum seekers fleeing Mozambique from terrorist attacks.
UN law has received “worrying” reports that Tanzania has rejected more than 1,000 people seeking refuge from a Daesh-alleged attack on a city in northern Mozambique, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said on Tuesday.
The March 24 attack on the city of Palma, next to the gas development worth $ 60 billion, sent the city’s residents scattered in all directions, and some fled into dense forest while others fled by boat.
Some went north towards Tanzania, aid workers said.
“UNHCR teams … have received worrying reports from displaced people that more than 1,000 people fleeing Mozambique and trying to enter Tanzania were not allowed to cross the border to seek asylum,” the UN agency said in a statement.
“UNHCR calls on Mozambique’s neighbors to provide access to territory and asylum procedures for those fleeing violence and seeking protection,” it said. Palma is located near Mozambique’s northern border with Tanzania.
UNHCR had previously told Reuters that it did not have access to the border or the affected areas without giving reasons. Tanzanian authorities could not be reached immediately for comment.
Last week, a boat with 45 fleeing Mozambicans arrived on board Tanzania, where a local community leader said they had been given food and shelter.
The UNHCR said the attack on Palma had forced at least 11,000 people out of the area, with thousands more reporting captive. Civilians have arrived in areas of relative safety further south on foot, by plane, road and boat.
The military said on Sunday that Palma was now “completely safe”, while local media visiting the city said some citizens had begun to return.
However, the full extent of the casualties and the movement from the attack are still unclear.
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