At least four civilians were killed early Monday by Ambazonia Restoration Forces in the Northwest and Southwest, local and security sources said.

In Mbatu, a locality in the Northwest Region, the Amba fighters opened fire at close range, killing three people, including a woman who was onboard a motorcycle.

In Lyongo village in the Southwest Region, Amba shot dead a commercial motorcyclist and torched his motorcycle, several security sources and local media reported.

“There were thunderous gunshots. It was like serious fighting was ongoing. It was scary,” a resident in Bamenda, the chief city of the Northwest Region where Mbatu is located said.

“Amba fighters have now resorted to attacking civilians. We have deployed additional troops to the regions,” a senior military official in the Southwest Region said but opted for anonymity.

Southern Cameroons leaders said on social media platforms that they have intensified the “ghost town” operation every Monday, during which all sorts of activities in the two Anglophone regions would come to a halt.

The Monday “ghost town” has been effective since 2017 when the Ambazonia Interim Government began clashing with the Francophone dominated government forces to create an independent nation in the Anglophone regions.

By Rita Akana with files