SOURCE: Mail & Guardian https://mg.co.za/article/2019-01-02-sa-man-accused-of-terror-related-activities-in-mozambique-to-appear-in-court
According to department of international relations and cooperation spokesperson Ndivhuwo Mabaya, Andre Meyer Hanekom — a South African citizen — is expected to appear in a Mozambican court this month. He is accused of supporting and aiding terrorist activities in northern Mozambique.
According to media reports, Hanekom will appear alongside Tanzanian nationals Chafim Mussa and Adamu Nhaungwa Yanhgue.
The three have been accused of supporting a jihadist group that wanted to create an independent state in gas-rich Cabo Delgado region, according to Mozambican authorities.
News agency AFP reported that Hanekom was formally arrested in August after being seized by military personnel from a restaurant in Pamla. Known as ‘baba mzungo’ or “white father”, Hanekom was allegedly responsible for logistics in terror-related activities.
This is not Hanekom’s first appearance in Mozambican courts.
According to Mabaya: “He has appeared in court three or four times before.”
READ MORE: Mozambique’s mysterious insurgency
In October, Hanekom’s wife Francis petitioned the South African government and Mozambican police to work towards releasing her husband. At the time, Francis had said her husband had been wrongfully arrested, and he was being framed.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Francis defended her husband, claiming that Hanekom’s arrest was because “influential people desire Andre’s property on the beach.”
“Lies will catch up, and those who laugh last, have the best laugh, after all,” she wrote. Hanekom’s daughter, Amanda, also posted on Facebook saying that the family planned to win the court case.
Views: 165
