Cameroon clashes claim lives of 22

Twenty-two people have been killed in clashes with the army in Cameroon, an opposition MP said on Saturday, in the latest violence to hit the northwest, where separatists of the English-speaking minority are fighting for greater autonomy.

The identity of those killed was not immediately clear, with the army describing them as “terrorists” and villagers saying they were criminals.

The US ambassador to Cameroon accused government forces earlier in May of carrying out targeted killings and other abuses against the independence-seeking militants.

“Twenty-two people were killed on Friday in Menka,” said Nji Tumasang, a member of the English-speaking opposition Social Democratic Front in Santa, the area in which the town of Menka is located.

He also said that families in Menka had told him 18 people were also killed on Thursday.

Violence between insurgents and government forces has occurred almost daily in the region since a political crisis escalated in late 2016.

An army officer confirmed the incident. “A group of terrorists was reported in Menka” and the military surrounded the hotel where they were, army spokesman Col Didier Badjeck said on Facebook.

He said a watchman alerted the hotel occupants, “which gave rise to long exchanges of fire lasting several minutes”.

Weapons and ammunition had been seized, he said.