More than 30 soldiers from the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) stormed Mpondabwino Market in Zomba on Tuesday around 9:00 p.m., firing guns, impounding a sewing machine, and apprehending seven people in a crackdown on illegal logging threatening the Zomba Mountain Forest.
The operation followed a directive from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change, instructing the MDF to patrol the protected Zomba Plateau Forest reserve.
Upon arrival at Mpondabwino, MDF soldiers confiscated the sawing machine and arrested its owner, Samuel Chingayipe, along with six young men. The detainees were taken to an undisclosed location.
Earlier that afternoon, soldiers also confronted individuals caught cutting trees in the forest, with some reportedly sustaining injuries during the encounter.
Repeated attempts to contact MDF Public Relations Officer Major Martin Kelvin Mlelemba for comment, but he did not respond.
