The past weekend was once again bloody in Bamenda, headquarters of the North West Region, where a separatist armed conflict has been raging since 2017.
At least three people died in the city on Sunday evening after two separate shootings that have shocked residents and raised new concerns over insecurity.
Locals say the first incident occurred around 7:30 p.m. at Asanji Plaza near the second District Police Station.
Eyewitnesses report that heavily armed men stormed the area and opened fire indiscriminately, sending people who were having an evening relaxation fleeing for safety.
“There was chaos. We were drinking inside the bar when gunshots erupted. People ran, some fell and were bleeding,” recounted one of those who were drinking at the bar.
One person was killed in the attack. He was identified as a young commercial motorcycle rider, a native of Talla village in Ndu Sub Division, Donga-Mantung Division.
MMI also learnt some civilians were wounded, though the exact number of remains unconfirmed.
In Bamenda III, a second disturbing discovery on Monday morning deepened the city’s trauma.
Two lifeless bodies were found along the road linking St. Agnes and Ntamulung Roundabout.
Local sources report that the two men were brought to the area and executed immediately, implying a potential targeted killing.
“I am certain those killed were brought there and shot. We heard gunshots, but it didn’t seem like it was an attack”.
No separatist group has claimed responsibility for either of the two incidents amid growing concerns of separatist attacks on civilians.
Authorities have not yet commented on the issue, which is raising fears among the local population.
Bamenda and other towns in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon have witnessed violence since 2017, when civilians took up arms in response to government violence on civilians.
The conflict has claimed thousands of lives, displacing hundreds of thousands of people and shattering livelihoods in the two regions.
The government says relative peace has returned to most parts of the two regions, but outbreaks of violence and ghost towns continue to obstruct it.
