Thousands of Cameroonians flee to Chad after herder-fisher violence
Some 11,000 Cameroonians from the Far North region of the country fled across the border to Chad, after violence between fishers and herders over the weekend, according to the governor of Chad’s Chari Baguirmi region.
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“Yesterday, our social services received nearly 11,000 refugees who came with almost nothing. They don’t have bedding, a change of clothes or food,” Governor Gayang Souare told Reuters newswire.
At least 20 people were killed in Cameroon’s Far North in the worst ethnic fighting in memory. The clashes broke out over a dispute where fisherpeople dug holes in the ground.
“There are wounded among them who require immediate medical care and children who are without their parents,” said Souare, adding that they are struggling to take care of them as their services were soon overwhelmed.
Chadian authorities told local media that they want to prevent the fighting in Cameroon to come to Chad because "they are the same communities".
The volatile Far North region of Cameroon is in an area where the Cameroonian army has been battling Boko Haram and fighters linked to Islamic State armed group.
The violence has heightened, according to local officials, because residents have bought weapons to defend themselves against Boko Haram.
(with Reuters)
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