Members of the Southern African Development Community , including neighbouring South Africa, have favoured the idea of regional military action as the violence has worsened and the threat to regional stability has grown.
In remarks following a SADC meeting in the capital Maputo, Nyusi said leaders had concluded the summit with a clearer sense of the"concrete steps" that needed to be taken to quell the violence. The summit followed the capture of the key northern town of Palma in March, which killed dozens, displaced over 50,000 people and brought a $20 billion gas project by oil major Total to a grinding halt.
Subsequently, South Africa said it would press for urgent military intervention in the conflict, while a leaked SADC document, which has not been verified, proposed sending a force of almost 3,000 soldiers to the country.