At least ten Southern Cameroonians were killed in an offensive by the Francophone dominated Cameroon government military in Big Babanki in the North West region.

The attack on Big Babanki was carried out late on Friday night to the early hours of Saturday.

Yaoundé said those killed were armed separatists who abducted, tortured and later released dozens of women in the locality last month.

A source with strong ties to the Ambazonia Interim Government contacted by Cameroon Concord News denied the allegations and revealed that the deceased were all civilians.

Hundreds of people in Big Babanki fled to the bush as the offensive unfolded.

Southern Cameroons Self Defense Forces, who have been in conflict with the Yaoundé government since 2017, hope to establish an independent nation in the two English-speaking regions known as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

By Fon Lawrence in  Bamenda