Four killed in Cameroon unrest ahead of poll results

Four killed in Cameroon unrest ahead of poll results

At least four people were killed in clashes between security forces and supporters of Cameroon’s opposition leader Issa Tchiroma, who claims victory in the October 12 presidential election, authorities said on Sunday — a day before official results were due to be announced.

Tchiroma, who challenged President Paul Biya’s 43-year rule, had urged his supporters to hold peaceful marches despite a ban on public gatherings. He claims to have secured 54.8 percent of the vote, though analysts widely expect the 92-year-old Biya to win a record eighth term amid allegations of a rigged system.

In the commercial hub of Douala, regional governor Samuel Dieudonne Ivaha Diboua said demonstrators attacked police stations and a gendarmerie brigade in two districts, leaving four people dead and several security personnel injured.

Eyewitnesses said security forces opened fire after first using tear gas, with protesters later displaying bullet casings at the scene. “They fired — three bodies fell in front of us,” one demonstrator said.

The Constitutional Council is scheduled to announce the final results on Monday in Yaounde.

Earlier, police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of demonstrators in Tchiroma’s northern stronghold of Garoua, where protesters carried national flags and banners reading “Tchiroma 2025” and chanted, “Goodbye Paul Biya, Tchiroma is coming.”

Authorities also reported internet disruptions in several areas, which monitoring group NetBlocks said could hinder coverage of unfolding events.

Cameroon’s Interior Minister Paul Atanga Nji warned that the protests risked sparking a “security crisis” and amounted to “an insurrectionist project.”