At least six civilians killed after Cameroon separatists open fire on bus
By Amindeh Blaise Atabong
YAOUNDE (Reuters) – Not less than six civilians have been killed and eight injured when separatists in southwest Cameroon opened hearth on a public bus on Tuesday, officers and the pinnacle of a regional hospital stated.
Anglophone insurgents preventing to carve out an impartial state out of Cameroon’s English-speaking North West and South West areas have escalated assaults, killings and kidnappings this 12 months.
The bus, travelling from the financial capital Douala to the town of Kumba, got here below hearth close to the city of Ekona, stated a transport syndicate official who didn’t want to be named for safety causes.
A parliamentarian for Ekona’s constituency, Findi Stanley Mokondo, confirmed the assault however didn’t present a demise toll.
Physician Martin Mokaka, head of the principle hospital in regional capital Buea, stated six useless our bodies and eight injured victims had been delivered to the power.
“We’ve had a busy day, working arduous with the forces of regulation and order to determine a few of the victims and inform their households,” he stated through phone.
Unverified footage of the aftermath shared on Twitter confirmed bleeding bus passengers mendacity nonetheless on seats coated in shattered glass.
Neither the separatists, who discuss with themselves as “Amba Boys”, nor the federal government have been instantly obtainable for remark.
Insurgents started preventing the Cameroonian army in 2017 after civilian protests calling for larger illustration for the Francophone nation’s English-speaking minority have been violently repressed.
Colleges are sometimes targets of their assaults and the training system has been closely disrupted in consequence.
Separatists imposed a two-week lockdown within the North West and South West areas on Sept. 5, the day colleges have been scheduled to renew after the summer season break.
(Reporting by Amindeh Blaise Atabong; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Enhancing by Bil Berkrot)
