European Union agrees to help Mozambique tackle insurgency: statement

FILE PHOTO: European Union flags flutter outside the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium August 21, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The European Union has granted Mozambique's request for assistance in tackling a wave of attacks in the country's north by rebels with links to Islamic State, the EU delegation in the southern African country said.

Militant attacks in Cabo Delgado province date to 2017 but the violence has gathered pace this year, with insurgents seizing important towns for brief periods and hitting military and other key targets.