The Akwaya massacre happened on 25 June 2022, when

militant The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin " ...

s killed at least 26

civilian Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, b ...

s in the village of in

Akwaya Akwaya is a town and commune in Cameroon. In 2022, at least 26 civilians were killed in a massacre. See also *Communes of Cameroon The Arrondissements of Cameroon are the third-level units of administration in Cameroon. The arrondissements ar ...

commune, Southwest

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

Background

There had been a long-standing territorial dispute between the villages of Ballin and Mavass, inhabited by the Mesaka and Oliti ethnic groups, respectively. A spokesperson from the

Presbyterian Church of Cameroon The Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC) is a Reformed denomination in Cameroon and a member of the World Communion of Reformed Churches. It is the largest English-speaking church in Cameroon, founded by Basel Mission. In addition to its religious ...

said that peace talks were being organized, but that representatives from neither of the communities agreed to attend. According to local sources, the massacre was preceded by the killing of Oliti men who had set up control posts in Ballin a few days prior.

Massacre

The attackers set fire to more than fifty houses and attacked the residence of Marin Aka, a local politician who had been attending his brother's funeral. Authorities recovered at least 26 bodies, including five

Nigerians Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

, although the estimated death toll was 32. The perpetrators also destroyed a hospital during the

massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

. Cameroonian health authorities were unable to organize an evacuation of the wounded, so villagers had to transport them to the nearest health center themselves. Those with severe injuries were evacuated to Nigeria for treatment. According to the

, a number died before they reached a Nigerian hospital.

Perpetrators

Government authorities said that the massacre had been committed by Ambazonian

insurgent An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric warfare, asymmetric na ...

s, which the rebels denied and instead suggested it had been committed by Nigerian rebels. The Presbyterian Church of Cameroon reported that the Akwaya massacre was actually related to a

land dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of land between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial disputes are often related to the possession of natural resources su ...

between Ballin and the neighbouring village of Mavass. Local officials said that Mavass had hired Ambazonian

separatist Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...

s to carry out the attack.

References

{{Reflist 2022 in Cameroon 2022 mass shootings in Africa 2022 murders in Cameroon 21st-century mass murder in Cameroon Anglophone Crisis Arson in Africa Arson in the 2020s Attacks on buildings and structures in 2022 Attacks on buildings and structures in Africa Attacks on hospitals June 2022 crimes in Africa Massacres in 2022 Massacres in Cameroon Southwest Region (Cameroon) Unsolved mass murders