Armed attackers suspected to be separatist fighters abducted three teachers and set examination papers on fire during an attack on Government High School Weh, in the Menchum Division of the North West region of Cameroon.
Reports indicate that three teachers, including the Vice Principal Taform Titus, were abducted during the attack, which also saw the destruction of students’ mock examination papers.
According to The Voice Newspaper, the assailants believed to be separatist fighters, launched the attack around 11 am on Tuesday, March 19.
Students who witnessed the attack said one of the assailants was dressed in Cameroon military attire when they stormed the school grounds firing gunshots into the air.
The school community was in shock and uncertainty as the assailants proceeded to kidnap the teachers amid the commotion that the gunfire had caused.
As of now, it remains unclear whether any injuries were sustained during the incident, and the whereabouts of the abducted teachers remain unknown.
This incident is the latest in a series of attacks on education infrastructure and personnel in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon.
The education sector in these areas has been constantly in danger ever since a lawyer-led and teacher-led strike disrupted school activities in 2016.
Separatist fighters, who seek to establish an independent state in the English-speaking regions, have been responsible for previous attacks on education, including the burning of school buildings, targeted killings of teachers and students, and abductions of education stakeholders.
These actions have not only instilled fear and insecurity within the community but have also severely disrupted the education of over 700,000 children in the two regions.
Last year alone, at least five teachers were reported killed in the Anglophone regions, according to a report by the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy for Africa (CHRDA).
The report lamented the use of education as a tool of warfare in Cameroon, highlighting the dire consequences for the affected communities.
