I myself moved to Canada in January, as Bamenda - where I lived - became too dangerous for me to work as a journalist. All public transport has been stopped, and shops, offices and markets have been shut.In the past, separatists ordered lockdowns for a day - usually on a Monday. Over 70 students kidnapped in Cameroon freed. A prisoner of war hides his identity in a makeshift cell in the village of Aqua on Feb. 11. February 25 The ruling enraged separatists, who stepped up their efforts to enforce a lockdown by ensuring that residents in the two regions - which have a population of about eight million - to remain at home. This time, the lockdown will be for two and possibly three weeks.Bamenda - the biggest English-speaking city with a population of about 400,000 - has been in lockdown since last week, while in other areas the lockdown started this week. Most schools in the two regions - including in villages - have been empty for three years, with buildings covered by long grass. VideoJacob Blake: Trump visits Kenosha to back police after shootingThe nudists spreading coronavirus in a French resortMelania Trump ex-confidante tell-all dishes on 'Princess Ivanka'Live video dating: Finding love online with an audienceWildlife Photographer of the Year: How many crocodiles can you see?BTS tell fans to 'stay strong' during difficult year In one incident, 80 pupils, their principal and a teacher - who defied the lockdown - were kidnapped last year, before being released about a week later. ... July 10, 2020 News Release Cameroon: Civilians Forced to Do Guard Duty. They insist that schools will remain shut until the government agrees to negotiations to create the state of Ambizonia - something that it has so far refused to do, thinking it can defeat those whom it calls "terrorists".
The president blames "domestic terror" for the unrest, as Democrats say he went to "spread hate".© 2020 BBC. He is accused of being an informant for the Cameroon government.
Separatist fighters denied involvement, but the government blamed them for the abductions.The conflict has its roots in the government's decision to increase the use of French in schools and courts in the mainly English-speaking regions in 2016. The latest breaking news, comment and features from The Independent. Cameroon atrocity: What happened after Africa Eye found who killed this womanCameroon's Anglophone crisis: Red Dragons and Tigers - the rebels fighting for independenceHow one man's death reverberated around the world. Cameroon: Boko Haram Suicide Bombers Strike Displacement Site . FILE - Members of Cameroon's security forces patrol in the South West province capital Buea, Oct. 3, 2018. Last month, a military court sentenced the self-proclaimed leader of Ambazonia, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, and nine of his colleagues to life in prison, following their arrest and deportation from neighbouring Nigeria. The separatists have targeted schools, more than anything else, because they are the softest of targets, and because they want to thwart the government's efforts to make children - the next generation of English-speaking Cameroonians - fall under greater French influence. Cameroon refugees struggle to cope with life of need in Nigeria.
This has worsened the humanitarian crisis, with some people stranded at bus stations in the two cities because they have nowhere to go.
Al Jazeera hears from a victim of gang rape.The 86-year-old Cameroonian, best known for the 1972 hit 'Soul Makossa' died in Paris, according to a representative.Cameroon's ethnic conflict has killed about 3,000 and displaced more than 679,000 in the Anglophone regions, UN says.Parts of the arid belt of land below the Sahara have been engulfed by swiftly deteriorating violence.Thousands of people turn out in Doula to welcome the return of Cameroon's opposition leader.
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.The separatists are enforcing a lockdown across cities, towns and villages in the North-West and South-West regions to ensure schools remain shut for a fourth academic year in a row.The regions are heavily militarised, with troops battling insurgents who use hit-and-run tactics. Schools were due to open on 2 September - instead parents and children have been fleeing their homes in their thousands as they fear an escalation of the conflict. It triggered mass protests and morphed into a rebellion the following year as some civilians - angry that the government deployed troops to crush the protests - took up arms.
Video'I refuse to let a British slaver take my name away' Video'I refuse to let a British slaver take my name away'Huw Edwards: My grandfather, Prisoner of War. Cameroon's descent towards civil war The United Nations Children's Fund, Unicef, says the ban on education has affected about 600,000 children, … ... Cameroon: 2 female suicide bombers launch attack near Nigerian border. They blame government troops for the deaths of their parents and have vowed to take revenge.