Ibo (Mozambique)

{{Short description|Island in Mozambique}}

{{Infobox islands

| name = Ibo

| native_name =Kisiwa cha Ibo

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| image_name = Ilha_do_Ibo-sunset-02.jpg

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| image_caption = Sunset on the beach at Ilha do Ibo

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| map = Mozambique

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| coordinates = {{coord|12|21|S|40|38|E|display=inline,title}}

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| archipelago = Quirimbas Islands

| waterbody = Indian Ocean

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| country = Mozambique

| country_admin_divisions_title = Province

| country_admin_divisions = Cabo Delgado

| country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Control

| country_admin_divisions_1 = {{Flagicon|Islamic State}} Islamic State – Central Africa Province (since March 6)

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File:Ilha do Ibo - Tartaruga.jpg

Ibo {{IPA|pt|ˈiβu|}} (Kisiwa cha Ibo, in Swahili) is one of the Quirimbas Islands in the Indian Ocean off northern Mozambique. It is part of Cabo Delgado Province. It grew as a Muslim trading port. Vasco da Gama reportedly rested on the island in 1502. The island was fortified in 1609 by the Portuguese.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

In the late eighteenth century, Portuguese colonialists built the Fort of São João, which still survives, and the town, as a slave port, became the second most important in the region after Mozambique Island. The island is now a far quieter place, known for its silversmiths.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

During the war of independence against Portugal, many members of FRELIMO and other nationalist organisations were imprisoned and killed at the fort. The first president of independent Mozambique stated in 1983 that "every palm tree on the island is fertilised by the bodies of the Mozambicans who were betrayed and killed by PIDE agents".{{cite web |last1=Bertels |first1=Ike |title=Mozambique: Treatment for Traitors |publisher=National Institute of Cinema (Mozambique) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRFH1pWDJr0}}

Ibo forms part of the Quirimbas National Park and is linked by dhows to the mainland at Tandanhangue.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

In April 2019, Cyclone Kenneth hit the island and it was reported that 90% of the homes were destroyed.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

During March 2024, Al-Shabaab jihadists reportedly seized the island after clashing with expelled forces from Quirimba island (also under control of the militants), forcing the remaining FADM members to flee towards the towns of Pemba and Quissanga. Some locals of the island denounced the government and local authorities of abandoning them.{{cite web |title=Cabo Delgado on Twitter (X) |url=https://twitter.com/DelgadoCabo/status/1765317780407009665 |via=Twitter }}[https://trackingterrorism.org/chatter/suspected-is-m-shabaab-cult-armed-assault-on-ibo-island/ Suspected Islamic State Mozambique (IS-M/Shabaab Cult) Militants Armed Assault on Ibo Island, Macomia, Cabo Delgado, Mozambique – TracTerrorism]{{cite web |title= TracTerrorism on Twitter (X) |url=https://twitter.com/TracTerrorism/status/1765314058394206370 |via=Twitter }}