Bloodshed returned to the streets of Bamenda on Monday afternoon after heavily armed men opened fire on civilians at an entertainment spot near the PMI Nkwen / Back Nkwen District Hospital area, leaving three people dead and several others critically injured. The victims—identified locally as one woman and two men—were targeted around 3:00 PM local time when the assailants, suspected to be armed separatist fighters, stormed the location on motorbikes.
Eye witnesses reported that gunmen fired indiscriminately into the spot where residents had gathered, sending bystanders scrambling for cover. The injured were rushed to nearby medical facilities, with staff working under strained conditions to treat gunshot wounds. The Monday attack unfolded during a strictly enforced "ghost town" lockdown, a compulsory general strike imposed weekly by competing Anglophone separatist factions. Now entering its tenth year since the crisis escalated in 2016, the ghost town policy continues to paralyze economic activity, routine transit, and public life across the North West and South West regions.
The timing of the attack coincides with a controversial "double ghost town" call issued by rival separatist groups, effectively freezing community life just as the rest of Cameroon enters the second week of the 2026/2027 academic year. While schools in other regions resume normal operations, classrooms across much of Bamenda remain empty due to fear of retaliatory violence and enforced boycotts.
Local residents express deepening despair as civilian soft targets continue to bear the brunt of the political stalemate and armed clashes. Unreported or underreported killings during Monday lockdowns have become a routine hazard for denizens who attempt to step out for basic needs or social respite.
No group has officially claimed responsibility for Monday’s shooting, and local authorities have yet to issue a formal statement regarding casualties or suspects. Security forces have reportedly deployed to the PMI Nkwen axis to investigate the scene and patrol the surrounding quarters.
