Uganda, in the backyard of ISIS-DRC.
On 24 March, Islamist insurgents attacked the northern Mozambican coastal town of Palma, killing dozens of people and looting and destroying buildings. The incident forced French energy giant
Total to abandon its multibillion-dollar liquid natural gas processing plant at nearby Afungi.
Theoretically,
Total will return if
Mozambique's security forces can guarantee a sufficient radius of stability around Afungi - one that would certainly include Palma. But there are ominous signs that
Total isn't contemplating a return anytime soon. Was it significant that the company wrote to at least one sub-contractor in April informing them of the 'termination' - not suspension - of contracts to build accommodation for construction workers at Afungi?