Gunmen ambushed and killed eight employees of a private construction firm working on the multi-billion-dollar gas project in Mozambique's restive north, the company said Sunday.

Northern Mozambique has been hit by a jihadist insurgency since 2017 that has killed more than 1,000 people and complicated the country's plans to develop its offshore gas reserves.

But attacks on workers involved in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) project development have so far been rare.

Fenix Constructions Service Lda, subcontracted by French oil giant Total, said five gunmen wearing military fatigues similar to those worn by the Mozambique government forces staged the attack in late June. Three of the 14 occupants in the vehicle survived and another three are still missing.

AFP