A pupil of the Saint Theresa Catholic Primary School in Kumbo, Bui Division of the restive North West region of Cameroon is reported to have been shot dead in a crossfire between Government forces and separatists fighting for the independence of the two Anglophone regions.
According to unconfirmed reports, the incident occurred this Friday August 20. Some pupils on holiday classes at the Saint Theresa Primary School in Kumbo found themselves caught up in a crossfire between Government defence forces and separatist fighters in that part of the country.
Two pupils, all girls are said to have received stray bullets, one died on the spot and the other was rushed to the hospital for treatment. Local authorities are yet to react to this information.
It reminds us of the Kumba school massacre last year in October when armed men, suspected to be separatist fighters stormed the Mother Francisca International Bilingual College in Fiango neighbourhood, opened fire, killing seven pupils and injuring some thirteen others.
The Cameroonian Government and separatist fighters later on blamed each other for the massacre that was strongly condemned at the national and international levels.
Separatist fighters have a history of attacking schools in the regions, which some of them regarded as legitimate targets because the French language is taught as a mandatory subject. While students have been abducted and mistreated numerous times throughout the Anglophone Crisis, and several teachers have been killed, the attack on Mother Francisca International Bilingual College was the first school massacre to take place during the close to five-year long crisis.
Ariane Foguem
