A football match in Cameroon’s first division had to be abandoned on Sunday after gunmen opened fire near the stadium in Bamenda, the chief city in the North West region, according to local police and eyewitnesses.

Players ran off the pitch and fans dived for cover when shots rang out near the end of the first half of the game between PWD Bamenda and Fauve Azur forcing officials to suspend the game, local police told reporters.

“The match was going on when we suddenly heard several gunshots. It was so terrifying. There was total confusion at the stadium and people were running in all directions,” James Nfor who was at the stadium said.

Police said that no one was harmed after the timely intervention of security forces forced the gunmen to flee.

It was not immediately clear who fired the gun, but local authorities said separatist fighters who have been operating in the region were responsible.

An armed separatist conflict has been going in Cameroon’s two Anglophone regions of Northwest and Southwest since 2017. Separatists say they want to create an independent nation in the regions.

Source: Xinhuanet