Mozambique to destroy seized ivory, rhino horn

Johannesburg - A New York-based conservation group says Mozambique plans to destroy more than one ton of confiscated ivory as well as 53 rhino horns to show its resolve in the fight against poaching.

Citing Mozambican authorities, the Wildlife Conservation Society says the destruction of the stockpile will happen Monday in Maputo, the capital.

The conservation group says 340 elephant tusks and 65 rhino horns were seized in a 12 May raid in Matola city. Ten days later, 12 of the horns were stolen from a police warehouse, and at least four officers suspected of involvement in the theft were arrested. Authorities are investigating whether the rhino horns came from neighbouring South Africa.

The Wildlife Conservation Society and the Mozambican government co-manage the Niassa National Reserve in the north of the country.