President Cyril Ramaphosa has deployed over 1,000 South African troops to support Mozambique quell an Islamic insurgency in the north of the country, APA learnt on Thursday.
In a letter to the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Ramaphosa informed the two Houses that he had sent 1,495 soldiers to “a service in support of an international obligation” in Mozambique.
That “international obligation” is the Southern African Development Community (SADC) of which Mozambique is a member, he said.
Speaker of the National Assembly, Thandi Modise, and NCOP Chairperson, Amos Masondo, have since confirmed of receiving the correspondence.
Parliamentary spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said the president’s correspondence of the employment of the troops started on 15 July 2021 and would end on 15 October 2021.
“The expenditure expected to be incurred in the four-month operation amounts to US$70.3 million,” Mothapo said.
NM/jn/APA