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July 31, 2020 was a day never to forget in Mbalangi.
Mbalangi is one of the biggest villages situated between Muyuka and the town of Kumba in Cameroon’s restive South West region.
Villagers woke up to carry out their daily activities when everything turned sour.
Residents say soldiers opened fire in the village, killing eight persons and injuring many others.
“There were no provocations from the people. Things where getting back to normal and the army decided to surprise the people,” one local tells to MMI.
Adding that this is not the first time such an incident is being witnessed in Mbalangi, he says some people are possibly benefiting from the war: “the real amba fighters in this village have left to search for a better life. These are just kids. The army is simply trying to induce new opponents to make sure business continues.”
In a video making rounds on social media, corpses of some of the victims are displayed. “Thomas Malachi is among those killed. There is also Nelly, Samuel from Ediki and two others who were victims of the military shooting,” a local says in tears.
“Places are calm now but many are still it the forest,” he adds.
Mbalangi is one of hundreds of villages to feel the pinch of the war in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions.
Government and separatist fighters have been at loggerheads for close to four years now as the death toll rises by the day.
Efforts to attain a ceasefire have so far proven futile.
Image: archives
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