Additional staff to help locate South Africans affected by Palma attacks, says Dirco

• The South African government is working to locate South Africans affected by the siege in Palma, Mozambique.
• More than 100 people, who were trapped in a hotel in Palma, have been rescued.
• Additional staff will be deployed to South Africa's Mission in Maputo to assist in locating South Africans affected by the attack.

The South African government is working with Mozambican authorities to locate South Africans affected by a recent attack in Palma, and will deploy additional staff to its mission in Maputo to assist with these efforts.

More than 100 people were rescued from a hotel in Palma after ISIS-linked militia attacks on the town. Palma is the site of a multitrillion-rand gas project by French oil company Total.

Al Jazeera reported that more than 180 people were trapped inside the Amarula Palma Hotel as the militants wreaked havoc in the town, forcing residents to flee into the nearby forest. 

Residents, expatriates and other contract workers came under attack in the three-day siege. The attack is believed to have killed several people, including one South African.

"The government of the Republic of South Africa has noted with concern the recent attacks in Palma, northern Mozambique, against foreign nationals which took place on Friday," the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said in a statement.

"It is with grave concern to note that South Africans were also affected by these attacks. In this regard, South Africa, through its mission in Maputo is working with the local authorities on verifications, as well as providing the necessary consular services."

Additional staff are being deployed to "handle the work at hand of locating, identifying and responding to the respective needs of the affected", department spokesperson Clayson Monyela said.