Tanzania: Terrorists Beheaded 3 People From Same Family, and Shot Another Person to Death, on a December 10 Attack in Mtwara

On December 12, UJASUSI Blog reported about a terrorist attack on a Tanzanian village of Kiwengulo. However, there was no confirmation due to restrictions on access to information put in place by Tanzanian authorities since the conflict began makes it unlikely to get any confirmation. These restrictions have led to an increasing reliance by the media on Mozambican sources that have contacts in Tanzania rather than drawing directly from Tanzanian sources for news of insurgent action in Tanzania.

And it is a Mozambican source, which has confirmed the attack and offered more details. Cabo Ligado reports

On 10 December, insurgents conducted a night attack on Kiwengulo, a village in Tanzania’s Mtwara region, just across the Ruvuma River from the Pundanhar area of western Palma district. Insurgents killed four civilians -- beheading three people from a single family and looting their home before shooting another young man dead. The attackers demanded that locals lead them to the homes of village officials, but were interrupted by the arrival of Tanzanian military forces. In the ensuing firefight, five insurgents were killed and one Tanzanian army vehicle was destroyed.