British man killed terrorists before fleeing Mozambique attack

Man rescued after escaping Al Shabab militants who launched five-day assault on coastal town

Sailing boats are used to help rescue people stranded on beaches as they try to escape the attack on the coastal town of Palma. AFP

A dual British citizen shot dead two terrorists involved in an attack in Mozambique before escaping.

More than 100 Al Shabab militants launched a five-day assault on the coastal town of Palma, a base for several companies involved in a new $20 billion natural gas project.

Many people were killed in the attack, including a British contractor.

British-South African citizen Nick Alexander killed two militants before spending two nights crawling through the bush with colleagues before they were rescued.

Fighting raged for the fifth day Sunday in northern Mozambique as rebels fought the army for control of the strategic town of Palma.

"He saw the commotion with the ambush ahead and got out," his daughter Jayde told The Times.

“There was a government vehicle with an AK-47 in it, so he broke in, got it and shot dead two militants.

"He and two others from the car then ran to hide into the bushes with the gun. They were literally crawling through the bush until they were rescued.”

Fighting was still continuing on Monday between government forces and the ISIS-linked fighters.

A British contractor was killed, The Times reported, as he travelled with more than 60 people in a convoy of 17 vehicles in a bid to escape the attack.

The convoy was attacked and only seven vehicles escaped.

On Sunday, 1,300 people were rescued but dozens of foreign citizens remain unaccounted for.

"Last Wednesday, a group of terrorists sneaked into Palma and launched actions that resulted in the cowardly murder of dozens of defenceless people," said Omar Saranga, a spokesman for Mozambique's Defence Ministry.

He said the aim of the extremists was to threaten the development of the energy projects.

About 180 people, among them some foreign citizens, who were trapped inside a hotel in the north of the town tried to escape in a convoy late on Friday but were ambushed, Mr Saranga said.

He said at least seven people died and security forces continued to face “some pockets of resistance from sporadic terrorist attacks".

French oil company Total is creating Africa’s biggest gas project in Mozambique but work at the plant was suspended on Saturday.

"Total trusts the government of Mozambique, whose public security forces are currently working to take back control of the area,” the company said.

The French energy company, which bought a 26.5 per cent stake in the development for $3.9 billion in 2019, did not say when operations would resume.