UN urges Tanzania to take in Mozambican refugees

JOHANNESBURG. – United Nations teams have received “worrying” reports that Tanzania has rejected over 1 000 people seeking refuge from an Islamic State-claimed attack on a town in northern Mozambique, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Tuesday.

The March 24 attack on the town of Palma, adjacent to gas developments worth US$60 billion, sent the town’s residents scattering in all directions, with some fleeing into dense forest while others escaped by boat. Some headed north towards Tanzania, aid workers said.

“UNHCR teams... have received worrying reports from displaced populations that over 1 000 people fleeing Mozambique and trying to enter Tanzania were not allowed to cross the border to seek asylum,” its statement said.

It called on Mozambique’s neighbours to provide access to those seeking protection. The UNHCR had earlier said it does not have access to the border or affected areas, without giving a reason. Two other aid workers said Tanzania had refused their organizations access, while the Mozambique side of the border was considered too dangerous.

Last week a boat with 45 fleeing Mozambicans on board docked in Tanzania, where a local community leader said they had been given food and shelter. Hundreds of others, meanwhile, had crossed into Tanzania by land, only to be sent back later via a different border post, according to one of the aid workers and a security consultant who works with a number of humanitarian agencies.

The military said on Sunday that Palma was now “completely safe”, while some citizens had started to return. – Al Jazeera.