Dear All,

Good morning.

This morning Maputo city is quiet and calm and, according to the Commander of Diplomatic Police there are no reports of incidents of anysort reported by reliable sources. However, text messages were circulating in the mobile net reporting disturbances in Machava, a quarter in the western side of the city. Then, the Commander of the local Police Station was contacted and stated that the situation on that area was normal and nothing has happened. It seems to have been one more falsealarm initiated by agitators who still want to take advantage of the unstable security situation.

Our Emergency Reaction Unit patrol is on the street since06:00 hrs and confirmed that the security situation in the city is absolutely peaceful with normal movement and flow of traffic for this time of the day. Besides the airport area and surrounding quarters, they also drove the streets/roads leading to the north and south, including Machava from where they did confirm that the situation is normal and tranquil.

Regarding the situation in Chokwe (Gaza province), the Commander of Diplomatic Police informed that it is now under control. Yesterday the media confirmed that 1 individual was killed and 7 to 10 wounded, being 2 of them badly injured.

One vehicle transporting an advisor from an embassy was stopped by approx 50 demonstrators who have blocked the road with burning tires. The demonstrators threw stones but did not hit the car. Then two citizens offered help by escorting the vehicle through a small street in Chokwe so that they managed to continue their trip towards Massingir. While leaving the place the adviser noticed that a pick-up came with 4-5 policemen and they shot in the air with AK47, in order to disperse the demonstrators.

Despite the apparent normalization, the security situation is still volatile and all staff is strongly advised to exercise caution and be alert. Please turn back at any sign of unrest and inform the UN Security Unit about abnormal situations you might observe. Your inputs are an extremely helpful contribution and they are being disseminate to whole international community.

Further security updates will be issued as required.