At least two civilians have been killed after separatist fighters raided Cameroon’s war-torn English-speaking region of Southwest, a local security source has said.

In the attack Monday night in Buea, the capital of the region, separatist fighters attacked three neighborhoods, shooting indiscriminately at vehicles and people, a local security official said late Tuesday.

“The separatist terrorists burned several cars, removed passengers from the vehicles, and shot at close range. The casualties could be more than two. We have initiated an operation to hunt them down,” the official, who asked not to be named, said.

Since 2016, separatists in the country’s Anglophone regions of Northwest and Southwest have imposed a so-called “ghost town” policy every Monday, during which no activities are operational in the regions.

A video clip of the attack was posted on social media early Tuesday by separatist leaders, who claimed that the attack was a response to “stubborn” locals that continue to disobey “ghost town.”

Separatists have been clashing with government forces in the two regions since 2017.

Source: Xinhuanet