At least 500 truck drivers are being assisted by the South African Red Cross on the main border with Mozambique, a source from the humanitarian organization told Lusa today.

Humanitarian aid is being provided to truck drivers stranded at the Lebombo border post, between Komatipoort and Ressano Garcia, which has been hit by violent post-election protests on the Mozambican side of the border in recent days, said Kgetsa Motutsi, provincial head of the Red Cross in Mpumalanga.

As a humanitarian organization, we have been providing hot meals, cooking, and even today there is a team on the ground preparing hot meals for those stranded here, mainly because they are not close to essential goods like food and water,” he told Lusa from the border with the neighboring Portuguese-speaking country.

"We are currently helping 500 people and are also trying to get more support," he said, adding that the weather conditions in the northeastern region of South Africa are adverse.

"The weather is unpredictable, one minute it's hot, the next it's very cloudy and cold, so we're also trying to provide them with coffee," the head of the Red Cross in the South African province of Mpumalanga, which borders Mozambique, told Lusa.

According to several sources, many trucks have been targeted in attacks and looting on the Mozambican side of the border, one of the busiest in the southern region of the continent and which supplies the Mozambican capital.

Maputo city center was the scene of violent clashes between thousands of people and security forces this Thursday.

South Africa's Border Management Authority (BMA) has closed its main border crossing with Mozambique since Tuesday night due to the violence that erupted in the neighboring country following the general elections of October 9, 2024.

At stake is the validation of the election results announced on October 24 by the National Elections Commission (CNE) of Mozambique.

According to the CNE, presidential candidate Daniel Chapo, from the Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO), in power since 1975, won the elections with 70,67% of the votes, generating popular protests throughout the country.

Protests arose after an appeal by presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who contested the 20,32% of the votes attributed to him by the CNE, placing him as the second most voted, results he declared he did not recognize.

At least 108 people were shot and 16 died in post-election violence in Mozambique in recent days, according to the Mozambique Medical Association (AMM).

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has called a “special summit” for the 20th in Zimbabwe, in which it will discuss the current situation of violence and political uncertainty in Mozambique, a South African government source told Lusa.