Ambazonia separatist fighters in the North West Region of Cameroon have killed two hostages, including a police officer, who were abducted alongside the Divisional Officer (DO) of Bamenda II on February 6.
Bodies of the two men, who included the DO’s bodyguard, and his driver, were found at Saan, a remote place in Nkum Subdivision of Bui Division.
Reports indicate that the military conducted an operation that led to the release of seven hostages this Friday morning. Five of them were abducted along with the DO on Tuesday.
The freed captives, whose identities remain unknown, comprised four women and three men. Images that surfaced online showed them with military men at a BIR base in Ndu.
The identities and relationships of the victims with the DO have remained elusive, raising questions about the motives behind their abduction.
The Division Officer, Nicholas Nkongho Manchang, managed to escape from captivity on February 7, a day after the group was seized in Ndu, while they were traveling for an official ceremony in Nkambe, Donga Mantung Division.
According to reports, a police officer who acted as his bodyguard had attempted to escape alongside the DO but was recaptured before being tragically shot dead days later.
Nicholas Nkongho Manchang becomes the third Divisional Officer to be victimised by separatist fighters in the Anglophone Regions, following the tragic fates of the DOs of Batibo and Ekondo-Titi who lost their lives in previous separatist attacks.
The Ambazonia separatists have been responsible for numerous abductions and killings of civilians, including government officials, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
The recent incident added to the death toll of the crisis, which had long exceeded 6,000, according to humanitarian groups.
Amid government claims about normalcy in the English-speaking regions, attacks by both separatists and the Cameroonian military continue to claim lives and sow insecurity in the two regions.
On Monday, January 29, separatists attacked civilians in Buea, headquarters of the South West Region, where they killed a civilian and burned down four cars in an attempt to enforce a ghost town.
They have also called for a lock down in prelude to Youth Day celebrations on February 11, heightening the prospects of insecurity and attacks during this period.
