YAOUNDÉ: The bodies of eight young men were discovered in Cameroon’s restive Northwest anglophone region, an opposition MP and eyewitnesses told AFP.
Local residents found the bodies in the bush in the town of Menka.
Photos of a dozen dead bodies circulated on social media but could not be independently verified.
Violence between armed anglophone separatists and government forces occurs almost daily in the Northwest Region and the Southwest Region, following an escalation of the crisis in late 2016.
According to Menka residents, the Cameroonian army fended off an attack in the area in mid-May but soldiers returned overnight between Sunday and Monday.
Many young people have been missing since.
“There have been some killings in Menka by the army,” Nji Tumasang, deputy of the first anglophone opposition party, the Social Democratic Front, told AFP.
“We think that at first glance they are civilians because no weapon was found on them. The husband of an activist from our party is among the victims.”
The Cameroonian government did not comment when approached by AFP.
Since anglophone separatists declared independence last October, dozens of officials and foreigners have been targeted for abduction.
Abductions are also used as a tool to enforce allegiance among locals who have not taken up the separatist cause. — AFP