ISIS-linked terrorists are preparing for a showdown with thousands of soldiers, as the jihadis “retreat into hideouts”.
Earlier this month, the 16-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) announced it would deploy a coalition of troops to Mozambique.
The southern African country has been overrun by Islamist militants in recent years.
Approximately 3,000 people have been killed in the chaos and almost 800,000 have been displaced.
Last week, Rwandan soldiers clashed with the jihadists on the border with Tanzania, inflicting dozens of casualties.
David Otto, counter-terrorism and organised crime expert at Global Risk International, believes the terrorists will retreat and regroup as the coalition advances.
He told the Daily Star: “[It] will force the jihadist into a defensive position at first – retreating into hideouts gives them enough time to re-assess the operational impact of arriving troops.
“How quickly the arriving troops jump straight into action after mastering the terrain could mean jihadists would be desperate to increase their numbers and look for more recruits.
“I suspect the jihadists will be looking to change targets and narratives.
“To win more local support, they may soon limit their attacks on hard military positions and push foreign troops to fall into human rights abuse traps.
Read the full story in Daily Star
