UNHCR: Nearly 100,000 displaced in recent weeks as violence spreads across northern Mozambique

Close to 100,000 people in northern Mozambique have been forced to flee in recent weeks after armed groups stormed their villages, burning homes and attacking civilians.

In Nampula Province, schools, churches and open spaces are crowded with newly arrived families.

This is the fourth massive influx of displaced people in recent months and it’s putting pressure on already fragile host communities.

The insurrection of fighters affiliated with the so-called Islamic State has already displaced more than 1.3 million people since it began in Cabo Delgado, the country’s northernmost state, in 2017.

Since the start of the year, attacks have spread into Nampula and Nissa Provinces, bringing violence closer to communities that had previously hosted displaced families.

The United Nations Refugee Agency UNHCR says it will need close to 40 million dollars next year to meet rising needs in the region. This year, funding stands at just 50 percent of the required amount.

In the meantime, the agency says, overcrowded shelters and the lack of response is forcing some people to return to unsafe areas.