19, December 2018
Cameroon military says it killed 7 suspected Ambazonian fighters 0
Cameroon’s military says it has killed seven suspected English-speaking separatist rebels in Bamenda in the North West region.Four soldiers were rushed to the local hospital, said a health worker, but the military has not reported any dead.The region’s army commander, Gen. Agha Robinson, said the military is finding it difficult to battle the rebels because they hide among civilians.
The fighting started Monday evening and continued throughout the night, as civilians fled their neighborhoods amid sporadic gunfire. A local student, Stanley Fru, 23, said he saw a stray bullet shatter the leg of an elderly woman who was going to the market early Tuesday morning.”The military was chasing fighters,” he said. “All of them were shooting indiscriminately.”
The fighting in Cameroon’s restive region erupted just days after President Paul Biya freed 289 suspected separatists, many of whom later urged the government to release their leaders who remain in jail.”We are urging the fighters to drop their guns,” said Deben Tchoffo, the governor of the North West region. He said that the release of the suspected terrorists should be taken as an indication that Biya “wanted peace to return” and pledged to “take care of them and reintegrate them socially and economically.”
Cameroon’s English-speaking separatists have been protesting since 2016 against what they claim is discrimination by the French-speaking majority. Initially the protests by teachers in the country’s English-speaking region were peaceful, but in response to a government crackdown some separatists have begun waging a violent campaign.
The Cameroonian government said that at least 1,200 people have died in the violence since January, which started after Nigeria detained and extradited separatist leader Julius Ayuk Tabe and 46 other alleged separatists to Cameroon.
Several of the recently released suspected separatists said that there will not be peace until Tabe and the others are also freed.The separatists, largely members of the Anglophone population, which accounts for about one-fifth of the largely French-speaking country’s 25 million people, have vowed to destabilize the region.
Source: Waff.com
19, December 2018
Southern Cameroons Crisis forces 430,000 people to flee 0
The number of people displaced as a result of the crisis in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions has spiked to more than 430,000 during the last months. Many people are hiding in the bush with no support, warns the Norwegian Refugee Council.
“We are deeply worried by the ongoing conflict and the increasing displacement figures. Parties to the conflict must ensure that civilians in the area are protected and are able to safely access life-saving assistance,” said David Manan, Country Director for the Norwegian Refugee Council in Cameroon.
The number of people displaced from their homes in Cameroon’s Anglophone Southwest and Northwest regions and in neighbouring Littoral and West regions has reached 437.000, according to the latest UN estimates.
NRC is assisting people displaced by this crisis. However, many people are left without any support, as insecurity is hindering organisations from accessing many areas. People are without proper shelter and sanitation facilities, clean water, food and access to medical care.
“The needs we are witnessing in the Southwest and Northwest regions are alarming and there are too few agencies on the ground to provide the necessary aid due to limited funding. We call for more donors to prioritise this crisis to allow more agencies to respond so that we can stem the rising tide of suffering and displacement,” said Manan.
“Displaced families who receive our assistance have told us that they share it or give it to their relatives who did not yet receive any assistance and desperately need help. Many people are hiding in the bush with no support, fearing for their lives,” added Manan.
“This is the first time I am being helped since I fled,” said Annoh, who received essential household items,including materials to build a shelter. “I will share what I have received with my husband who is hiding in the bush. He has nothing but the clothes he was wearing when he fled,” she added.
NRC is distributing household items, shelter and hygiene kits in Northwest and Southwest regions with support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA) and European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO).
Reported by NRC:
The Norwegian Refugee Council(NRC) is a humanitarian organisation working in more than 30 countries globally. It has been present in Cameroon since 2017.