“Heavily armed, everything razed”: Catholic Priest on Attack on Mozambican Town, Parish

“Everything was machine-gunned, everything was razed, not even a single piece of clothing was left,” the member of the Clergy of Brazil’s Diocese of Guarulhos lamented, adding, “They burned tents, they burned surrounding houses, they burned a car, they even burned the Health Center in Mazeze Sede.”

“The only thing I took out of there was a small suitcase, thinking I would be back in a few days, so everything, even documents, were destroyed,” Fr. Rodrigues de Brito said.

He continued, “The only thing that was saved, thanks to God, was the Blessed Sacrament and the books of sacraments, baptisms and marriages, that I had brought with me, and the Most Holy Sacrament that was in the chapel of the mission headquarters, which I managed to take when I escaped.”

Our Lady of Africa Mazeze Parish is the headquarters of the “Window on the Future” social project and during the attack, the Catholic Priest said, some of the equipment used to implement the project was destroyed, including sewing machines. 

“There were only six sewing machines, as well as other things, in the missionary house. Everything that was there, the clothes, the vestments, everything was razed,” Fr. Rodrigues de Brito said.

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The crisis in Northern Mozambique, which erupted in 2017 is mostly concentrated in Cabo Delgado province, but has also spread to neighboring provinces, such as Nampula and Niassa. As at December 2023, the violent conflict had displaced over one million  people.

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate.