48 were murdered by Cameroonian security forces during election protests, according to UN sources
Two U.N. sources told Reuters on Tuesday that 48 civilians were killed by Cameroon’s security forces during their response to protests against the reelection of the country’s oldest ruler, President Paul Biya.
Several of the victims died from wounds they received from being beaten with batons and clubs, but the majority were murdered by live rounds, according to the two U.N. sources.
A government official did not reply to a request for comment on Tuesday, and the 92-year-old Biya’s administration has not disclosed the number of people killed in the protests.
Biya’s government was accused on Tuesday by Republican Senator Jim Risch of Idaho, the head of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, of holding a “sham” reelection, pursuing its political rivals, and illegally holding American citizens, including some from Idaho.
He didn’t say to whom he was speaking.
“Cameroon is not a partner of the United States and presents threats to American security and the economy. Risch stated on X, “It’s time to reevaluate this relationship before the blowback gets worse.”
Last week, opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary, a former government spokesperson who resigned from his ministerial position in June, received 35.19% of the vote, while Biya won the election with a landslide victory, 53.66%.
Shortly after the election on October 12, Tchiroma proclaimed himself the victor, and protests broke out across the country as preliminary results indicated Biya, who had been in power since 1982, would be awarded an eighth term.
Stand Up for Cameroon, a civil society organization, reported last week that security forces’ crackdown on protestors had resulted in the deaths of at least 23 individuals.
Nearly half of the U.N.-recorded deaths took place in the Littoral area of Cameroon, which includes the port city of Douala, the scene of last week’s most severe election-related protests.
According to U.N. records, three gendarmes also perished in Douala.
Tchiroma’s hometown, Garoua, is the capital of the North region, where ten fatalities were reported.
This week, protests have significantly decreased. In order to express disapproval of the election results, Tchiroma called for a three-day nationwide lockdown to begin on Monday and urged followers to refrain from leaving their homes.
Biya is anticipated to take the oath of office on Thursday.
