By Manuel Mucari and Custodio Cossa MAPUTO (Reuters) -Mozambique opposition leader Venancio Mondlane returned from self-exile on Thursday, defiantly claiming to have won a hotly contested October election,

After a self-imposed exile, Venâncio Mondlane was welcomed home by delirious crowds supporting his claim that the country’s last election was stolen from him by corrupt elites.

Supporters of Mozambique's opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane have been injured as police tried to break up the crowds who had come to meet him after his return from self-imposed exile on Thursday. He had left the country saying he thought his life was in danger following October's disputed presidential election that sparked deadly protests.

Police in Mozambique fired tear gas at demonstrators welcoming the return of opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane after October's disputed vote. View on euronews

Mozambique opposition leader Venancio Mondlane returned home on Thursday, after fleeing in the days following a hotly contested October election that sparked demonstrations in which scores of protesters have been killed.

Some speculate that Frelimo has been instigating chaos as an excuse to crack down. Security forces have killed around 300 people since the protests began, including 176 in the final week of December alone,

Mozambique's Special forces members deployed to guard opposition leader Venancio Mondlane as he addresses his supporters on the street in Maputo, Mozambique, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/)

Mozambique: Thousands of people turned out in the capital, Maputo, to meet main opposition leader Venancio Mondlane after he returned home from more than two months in exile Thursday to push his claim that he won the October presidential election.

Mozambique's main opposition leader returned from weeks of exile Thursday, insisting he won October's presidential elections and welcomed by thousands of jubilant supporters, although  one person was killed as police tried to disperse the crowds.