FRELIMO (Front for Liberation of Mozambique)*
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On 25 September 1964, FRELIMO solders, with logistical assistance from the surrounding population, attacked the administrative post at Chai in Cabo Delgado Province. This raid marked the beginning of the armed struggle against the colonial regime. FRELIMO militants were able to evade pursuit and surveillance by employing classic guerrilla tactics: ambushing patrols, sabotaging communication and railroad lines, and making hit-and-run attacks against colonial outposts before rapidly fading into accessible backwater areas.*
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At the war's outset, FRELIMO had little hope for a military victory; its hope lay in a war of attrition to compel a negotiated independence from Lisbon. The goal of FRELIMO was to make the war so costly that eventually Portugal would withdrawl, a goal made difficult by loans from the United States and West Germany and arms from NATO to Portugal. On the other side, FRELIMO received military equipment and training came from Algeria, Russia and China, with some non-military educational aid from the U.S.A..*
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Portugal fought its own version of protracted warfare. Had the military succeeded with a minimum of expenditure and casualties, the war could have remained undecided for much longer. But the expense in blood and treasure, not military defeat, cost Lisbon the war; its army was never destroyed on the battlefield, although some of its officers were converted to FRELIMO's revolutionary social goals for Portugal.*
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On 24 April 1974 the authoritarian regime had been overthrown in Lisbon, a move that was supported by workers and peasants. The Armed Forces Movement in Portugal pledged a return to civil liberties and an end to the fighting in all colonies. The rapid chain of events within Portugal caught FRELIMO, which had anticipated a protracted guerrilla campaign, by surprise. It responded quickly to the new situation and on 7 September 1974 won an agreement from the Armed Forces Movement to transfer power to FRELIMO within a year. On 25 June 1975 Mozambique became free.*