Human Rights Watch revealed that more than 600 women and girls from Mozambique were kidnapped and enslaved by the Al Sunnah wa Jama'ah and the Al-Shabab in a span of three years. Both are Muslim extremist groups affiliated with the Islamic State.
CBN News said local authorities have already rescued some of these women and girls from their captors who abducted them at a young, healthy age so they could "marry" them and enslave them sexually.
The Al Sunnah wa Jama'ah and Al-Shabab are known to target lighter-skinned women and girls since they also sell them to foreign fighters with prices ranging from $600 to $1,800. The extremists have also been reported to abduct foreign women that they release as soon as ransoms are paid by their families.
Human Rights Watch Africa Director Mausi Segun called on the extremists for the release of the remaining captives in a statement. He pointed out the need for an end to the extremist group's operation in Mozambique.
"Al Shabab's leaders should immediately release every woman and girl in their captivity. They should take all necessary steps to prevent rape and sexual abuse by their fighters, end child marriage, forced marriage, and the sale and enslavement of women and girls at their bases and areas of operation," Segun said.
Human Rights Watch interviewed a total of 37 people from August 2019 to October 2021 that included released captives and their relatives, government officials, and security sources. The watchdog also monitored media reports on kidnappings in the area. They found out that the extremist groups were able to abduct the women during attacks made in various districts of Cabo Delgado in March, June, and August 2020 and in March 2021.
One of those interviewed was a 33-year-old woman whose aunt was assaulted by Al-Shabab militants who demanded information on the specific location of girls aged 12 to 17 in their town of Mocimboa da Praia. The woman's aunt happened to be a local official and was able to provide information about a total of 203 girls in their area though she was unaware of the militants did abduct all of them.
Another interviewee, a 27-year-old man, recounted how mothers begged the militants to spare their children and take them instead.
"Some mothers were begging the fighters to take them instead of their daughters. But one of the mashababos said they didn't want old women with children and diseases," the 27-year-old man said.
While a 34-year-old man from Mocimboa da Praia disclosed how he was forced to select women for sex with the extremists after one of their military operations when he was still their captive. The man said that women "who refused" the extremists "were punished with beatings" and were deprived of "food for days."
The Mozambique authorities are said to hold hundreds of people freed from the extremists without access to relatives for weeks as they screen them from suspected fighters. A Cabo Delgado Governor's Office official disclosed to Human Rights Watch that those held by the authorities are attended to medically, which included psychosocial intervention. These people, the official said, were freed from the extremists' bases in the Complexo Desportivo de Pemba.
"Mozambican authorities and international and regional partners, including the Southern African Development Community (SADC), should provide rights-respecting, gender-sensitive, child-sensitive, and dignified reintegration and rehabilitation services, including comprehensive post-rape care, to rescued women and girls," Human Rights Watch stressed.
"The authorities should fully investigate and appropriately prosecute Al-Shabab leaders and fighters for abductions, child and forced marriages, rape and sexual violence, enslavement, and other gender-based crimes in violation of international and Mozambican law," the watchdog added.
