More than 70 children are missing following recent jihadist attacks in Mozambique's northern Cabo Delgado province, the authorities say.
They became separated from their families as thousands fled to a neighbouring province in recent weeks.
There are fears that some of them may have been kidnapped by the fighters linked to the Islamic State (IS) group.
Regional troops have been helping the military tackle an insurgency involving Islamist militants that began in 2017.
But the violence has spiked recently and the medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) says 80,000 people have been displaced since January.
The children were among those who fled over the last few weeks from Cabo Delgado's Chiùre district to Nampula province.
Chiùre, in the south of Cabo Delgado, has been a relatively safe haven for those displaced over the last few years - with the violence mainly being reported in the north of the province.
Last week, President Filipe Nyusi said the jihadists had deliberately targeted Chiùre to abduct children.
There is concern they may have been placed in training camps by the militants, the private newspaper Expresso da Tarde reports.
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