Four Killed As Cameroon Election Protests Turn Deadly
At least four people have died in clashes between Cameroonian security forces and supporters of opposition leader Issa Tchiroma, authorities confirmed, as the country awaits the official announcement of presidential election results on Monday.
Tchiroma, who challenged President Paul Biya’s 43-year-long rule in the October 12 vote, had urged his supporters to march peacefully despite a ban on public gatherings.
He claims to have secured 54.8% of the votes, but analysts widely expect the 92-year-old Biya to win an eighth term amid accusations of electoral manipulation.
In Douala, Cameroon’s largest city, the regional governor reported that protesters attacked a gendarmerie brigade and local police stations on Sunday.
Samuel Dieudonne Ivaha Diboua said four people were killed and several security personnel were injured.
Witnesses told AFP that security forces fired live bullets following the use of tear gas. One demonstrator said, “They fired, three people, three bodies fell right in front of us,” while showing collected bullet casings.
The Constitutional Council is scheduled to release the final election results at 11:00 a.m. (10:00 GMT) in the capital, Yaounde.
In the northern city of Garoua, police deployed tear gas to disperse hundreds of Tchiroma supporters carrying Cameroonian flags and banners reading “Tchiroma 2025,” while chanting against Biya.
Supporters have gathered around Tchiroma’s residence for days. The opposition leader claimed in a video on Sunday that military personnel had attempted to detain him.
While demonstrations were largely absent in Yaounde due to heavy police presence, a small group of people in Douala defied the ban by gathering near the airport.
On Friday, two opposition figures from the coalition backing Tchiroma were arrested at their homes in Douala. They are Djeukam Tchameni, president of the Movement for Democracy and Interdependence in Cameroon, and Anicet Ekane, president of the African Movement for the New Independence of Cameroon.
Internet access in several areas has been reportedly disrupted, with monitors such as NetBlocks warning this could limit coverage of ongoing events.
Minister of Territorial Administration Paul Atanga Nji described the protests as creating conditions for a “security crisis” and said they supported “an insurrectionist project.”
AFP
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