UPDATE 1-Cameroon Airlines passenger jet comes under fire in northwest


Reuters | Yaounde | Updated: 01-12-2019 23:10 IST | Created: 01-12-2019 22:57 IST
UPDATE 1-Cameroon Airlines passenger jet comes under fire in northwest
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  • Country:
  • Cameroon

A Cameroon Airlines passenger jet came under fire on Sunday morning while approaching Bamenda airport in the northwest of the country, where separatist insurgents are fighting the army, the airline said in a statement.

The scheduled flight from Douala landed safely and there were no casualties, the statement said. The airline has grounded the plane while it assesses the damage. "Thanks to the bravery of the captain, the aircraft was able to land smoothly despite the impact on its fuselage," it said.

It was not immediately clear who fired on the plane, but the English-speaking west of Cameroon has been a battleground since 2017 between the army and rebels seeking to form a breakaway state called Ambazonia. What began as peaceful protests in the southwest calling for greater powers for English speakers in the majority French-speaking country have degenerated into near-daily violence.

Despite tentative efforts to sue for peace, fighting has continued, with both sides accused of atrocities, including the use of bombs and kidnappings by separatists and indiscriminate killings by the armed forces. Separatist leaders were not immediately available for comment.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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