<p>The Islamic State group said Monday it had seized the coastal town of Palma in northern Mozambique, after days of fighting.</p>.<p>"The caliphate's soldiers seize the strategic town of Palma" after three days of fighting, the group said in a statement on its Telegram channels.</p>.<p>It said it had attacked military and government targets in an offensive that killed dozens, including troops and "members of Crusader states" -- Western nationals.</p>.<p>Militants raided Palma, a town of around 75,000 in the province of Cabo Delgado, on Wednesday in a major escalation of an Islamist insurgency that has steadily spread across northern Mozambique since 2017.</p>.<p>Security sources told <em>AFP</em> on Saturday that Islamist militants had seized control of the town.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/dozens-killed-in-besieged-mozambique-gas-town-palma-967720.html" target="_blank">Dozens killed in besieged Mozambique gas town Palma</a></strong></p>.<p>The government said dozens were killed in the coordinated attack, including seven people caught in an ambush during an operation to evacuate them from a hotel where they had sought refuge.</p>.<p>Palma was all but deserted on Monday after thousands of residents abandoned their homes and fled by road, boat and on foot.</p>.<p>The defence ministry said late Sunday that the security forces had "reinforced their operational strategy to contain the criminal attacks of terrorists and restore normality in Palma".</p>.<p>It said it had focused its efforts since Friday "primarily on the rescue of hundreds of citizens".</p>
<p>The Islamic State group said Monday it had seized the coastal town of Palma in northern Mozambique, after days of fighting.</p>.<p>"The caliphate's soldiers seize the strategic town of Palma" after three days of fighting, the group said in a statement on its Telegram channels.</p>.<p>It said it had attacked military and government targets in an offensive that killed dozens, including troops and "members of Crusader states" -- Western nationals.</p>.<p>Militants raided Palma, a town of around 75,000 in the province of Cabo Delgado, on Wednesday in a major escalation of an Islamist insurgency that has steadily spread across northern Mozambique since 2017.</p>.<p>Security sources told <em>AFP</em> on Saturday that Islamist militants had seized control of the town.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/dozens-killed-in-besieged-mozambique-gas-town-palma-967720.html" target="_blank">Dozens killed in besieged Mozambique gas town Palma</a></strong></p>.<p>The government said dozens were killed in the coordinated attack, including seven people caught in an ambush during an operation to evacuate them from a hotel where they had sought refuge.</p>.<p>Palma was all but deserted on Monday after thousands of residents abandoned their homes and fled by road, boat and on foot.</p>.<p>The defence ministry said late Sunday that the security forces had "reinforced their operational strategy to contain the criminal attacks of terrorists and restore normality in Palma".</p>.<p>It said it had focused its efforts since Friday "primarily on the rescue of hundreds of citizens".</p>