File photo: Pope Francis waves to worshipers from the window of the apostolic palace overlooking St. Peter’s Square on September 13, 2020 in The Vatican, during the weekly Angelus prayer within the COVID-19 infection, caused by the novel coronavirus. (Photo by Vincenzo PINTO / AFP)

Pope Francis has donated 100,000 euros to a fund helping hundreds of thousands of people displaced by a violent Islamist insurgency ravaging northern Mozambique, a bishop said Monday.

The fund was set up by Bishop Luiz Fernando Lisboa, who is in charge of the troubled northern Cabo Delgado province, to help victims of the violence that has displaced half-a-million people and claimed some 2,000 lives.

“Pope Francis made a donation of 100,000 euros ($ 120,000) and the bishop (Lisboa) is hoping to build clinics,” Jose Luis Ponce De Leon, the bishop of Manzini told AFP Monday.

Pope Francis visited Mozambique in September last year.

Jihadist attacks began in 2017 and have since spread to massive swathes of the province.

Lately, the attacks have increasingly been claimed by the Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP), affiliated with the Islamic State group.

AFP