From late September to early October 2025, the fighting in Cabo Delgado, a northern province of Mozambique, escalated again, triggering a severe humanitarian crisis. According to the latest briefing released by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), nearly 22,000 civilians have been forced to flee their homes in just one week in search of safer shelters.
This round of conflict broke out in the middle and late September, interwoven with long-standing extremist organization activities in the region, counterattacks by government security forces, and the fragile defense networks of residents. Cabo Delgado has always been the core area where Islamic extremist groups are active in Mozambique. Since 2017, conflicts have been intermittent, causing a long-term humanitarian predicament. The local conflict monitoring organization Cabo Ligado pointed out that from mid-September to the end of 2025, extremist armed groups launched armed attacks in three counties in the north, while remaining present in the southern and western regions of the province. Several villages were hit by arson, kidnapping, and attacks, forcing residents to evacuate within a short period of time.
The UNHCR briefing indicates that the scale of this wave of displacement is among the highest in the year. Xavier Creach, the UNHCR representative in Mozambique, said at a press conference in Geneva: “After years of turmoil, many families are already exhausted; Some people are reluctant to leave their homes even when in danger, but many more choose to flee because they can’t see any hope. According to statistics, since the outbreak of the conflict, more than 1.3 million people have become internally displaced. Among the nearly 22,000 people who were forced to relocate this time, many were originally “host” families that had provided temporary accommodation for other displaced people, but this time they themselves became refugees.
Between Cabo Delgado, located along the Indian Ocean coast, and the surrounding autonomous counties, many communities rely on agriculture, fisheries, and a small amount of tourism. As the conflict once again spread to 17 counties and districts in the province, local infrastructure was destroyed: roads were cut off, power and water supply systems failed, schools and sanitation facilities were damaged, and a large number of evacuees were forced to gather in public schools, churches, or makeshift shelters. Medicos Sin Fronteras (Doctors Without Borders) reported that in a recent armed attack, tens of thousands of civilians were forced to migrate within a few days, and their drinking water, sanitation, and medical supplies are extremely tight. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) pointed out that as of the end of September, the number of armed attacks reported in the province throughout the year had reached 519, significantly higher than the level in the same period of 2022.
During their exile, the local people faced multiple survival challenges. Many families have to walk for several days over mountains and through valleys to avoid road traps and surprise attacks. Women and children are particularly vulnerable during the process of fetching water and gathering firewood, and often become targets of kidnapping, sexual violence, or forced conscription. The elderly and people with disabilities are often forced to stay halfway or in place due to their limited mobility, bearing great risks to their lives. The UNHCR calls on the international community to respond immediately and enhance emergency humanitarian assistance, including food, water, tents, sanitation facilities, disease surveillance, and medical support.
The central government and local authorities of Mozambique have mobilized emergency response mechanisms. According to reports from local media and disaster management agencies, the Emergency Operations Committee of Cabo Delgado Province has listed approximately 113,000 households as recipients of assistance, with huge demands for living supplies, sanitation, resettlement, etc., in the next six months. President Daniel Chapo condemned any “barbaric acts” against innocent civilians at a religious conference in the capital, Maputo, emphasizing the need to defend national sovereignty and the dignity of the people.
Meanwhile, local security forces, in collaboration with international aid troops, launched a clearance operation against extremist militants. Over the past few years, the Mozambican government has received military support from Rwanda, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and other national forces to strengthen the northern defense line and recapture occupied villages. Conflict monitoring data shows that during this fluctuation, extremist groups targeted villages that were weak or had weak defense to launch rapid raids, and after completing the destruction, they quickly withdrew to avoid counterattacks from security forces. Nevertheless, the “guerrilla-fast strike” style makes it difficult for local defense to eliminate its residual influence.
On the international stage, many international institutions and humanitarian organizations have issued warnings about this latest crisis. The UNHCR emphasized that this is one of the largest and fastest-growing short-term displacement incidents in the region in recent years. Doctors Without Borders issued a statement saying that if aid is insufficient, this conflict could evolve into a deeper humanitarian disaster. Relief organizations have called for the establishment of safer routes, enhanced airdrops of supplies, and strengthened management of refugee camps to reduce civilian casualties and prevent the spread of the disease.
At present, it is still unclear whether this wave of conflict will continue to intensify or spread to neighboring provinces. The coming weeks will be crucial as the Mozambican government and the international community jointly deal with the pressure: if the aid response is slow and local defenses are weak, existing residents will be left with no one to rely on.
In conclusion, the conflict in Cabo Delgado flared up again from late September to early October 2025. It not only tore apart the local society once more, but also posed a great test to the already fragile emergency response system. More than 20,000 people were forced to flee within seven days. Behind this figure lies the breakdown of one family after another and the struggle of one life after another. In the face of this new wave of disasters, domestic and international support forces must quickly gather and precisely implement measures to mitigate the impact of the disaster on the most vulnerable groups.
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