Pope Francis has donated $121,000 to support victims of terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique.
The donation was in response to an appeal by the Bishop of Pemba, Luis Fernando Lisboa, for assistance to thousands of people displaced from their homes by attacks by Islamist militants.
While making the appeal in an interview last week, the cleric had said: “We are living in a time of war that has already lasted three years. It began with an attack on the police station, then on the distant villages, passing through the larger villages until it reached the center of the cities. Four cities have already been almost completely emptied. By now, this war has killed more than 2,000 people and we now have more than 500,000 displaced people.”
Bishop Lisboa has been heading the “Together for Cabo Delgado” campaign.
He told reporters that the pope’s donation would be used to build health facilities in areas where displaced people are camping, particularly in the districts of Montepuez and Chiure.
A delegation from the Episcopal Conference of Southern Africa visited Cabo Delgado last week at Bishop Lisboa’s invitation. It called for an urgent solution to the insecurity in the region and support for the displaced people.