Clashes in Mozambique injure 50

Almost 50 people were injured during
clashes between supporters of
Mozambique's ruling party and the
opposition, hospital staff said this week,
just days before municipal elections.
The injuries occurred when members of
the ruling Frelimo party and the
opposition Mozambique Democratic
Movement clashed during a rally in
Gorongosa district, near the city of
Beira.
Residents of Gorongosa had started to
flee the district, national television
station STV reported, fearing an attack
by fighters loyal to the opposition
Renamo party, which is boycotting the
vote.
Renamo, Mozambique's largest
opposition party, has 51 seats in the
250-member parliament.
Its leader, Afonso Dhlakama, has been
on the run since the military attacked
his hide-out in the bush last month,
after Renamo guerrillas launched
attacks in central Sofala province, about
1000km north of the capital, Maputo.
Earlier this year, Renamo was blamed
for a series of attacks on convoys and
railway lines. The former rebel group
signed a peace deal with Frelimo in
1992, ending a bloody civil war.
Renamo officials, however, tore up the
agreement after the military took over
Dhlakama's headquarters in Sofala last
month. A senior Renamo leader was
killed in the raid.
SOURCE: Timeslive.co.za