Cameroon’s government said 10 “Ambazonia Restoration Forces” were killed by the army in Southern Cameroons, denying online reports of civilian deaths in the weekend military operation.

Southern Cameroons Self Defense groups have been fighting for independence for two anglophone provinces in the majority French-speaking country since 2017.

The Francophone Communication Minister Rene Emmanuel Sadi said on Monday in a press release that a separatist commander known as “General Fire Man” was among those killed on Saturday in fighting between the Restoration Forces and French Cameroun government army soldiers.

“Ten separatist terrorists were neutralised, including three women” in Small Babanki in the Northwest Region, he said.

The Southern Cameroons Interim Government announced that  10 civilians, including women and children, were killed by troops loyal to the regime in Yaounde.

These were dismissed by the Francophone government as “false propaganda” and “totally unfounded allegations, contrary to reality”.

Fighting between the two sides — and reprisal attacks on civilians — have left more than 3,000 dead in the two western regions during the three-year conflict.

Human Rights Watch has also accused Cameroon’s armed forces of taking part in the killing of at least 21 civilians on February 14 in a remote part of Northwest Region. The army has denied the accusations.

By Camcordnews with files from AFP