Angry villagers in Mozambique have killed a dozen people suspected of being witches after a killing spree by man-eating lions, police said on Monday.
A police representative told Radio Mozambique lions had devoured 20 victims, including women, in northern Cabo Delgado province over the past four months.
Villagers, who believe the lions to be witches who have taken on the form of the carnivores, have attacked and killed 12 people in the area, he said.
”Twelve suspected witches were beaten to death by angry relatives (of the dead),” the official said.
No arrests had been made, but there were plans to hunt down the man-eating lions.
Belief in witchcraft is prevalent in central and northern Mozambique, which is marked by high rates of illiteracy. There are also many reported casualties from animal attacks in wild, remote areas.
So far this year, 22 people have been reportedly killed in crocodile attacks in the central Mozambique province of Tete. Many local people also believe these attacks to be the work of witches. – Sapa-AFP