Cameroon clashes leave 22 dead: opposition

Yaoundé: Twenty-two people have been killed in clashes with the army in Cameroon, an opposition MP said Saturday, in the latest violence to hit the restive northwest, where separatists from the English-speaking minority are fighting for greater autonomy.

The identity of those killed was not immediately clear, with the army describing them as "terrorists" and villagers saying they were criminals. The clashes come after the US ambassador to Cameroon accused government forces earlier this month of carrying out targeted killings and other abuses in the fight against the independence-seeking militants.

"Twenty-two people were killed Friday in Menka during a confrontation... (between the army and) a group of people that were presented as criminals," said Nji Tumasang, a member of the English-speaking opposition Social Democratic Front (SDF) in Santa, the area in which the town of Menka is located. Violence between insurgents and government forces has occurred almost daily in the region since a political crisis escalated in late 2016.

An army official confirmed the incident, speaking of "several neutralised terrorists". "A group of terrorists was reported in Menka" and the military intervened to surround the hotel where they were, army spokesman Colonel Didier Badjeck said on Facebook. He added that a "watchman alerted (the occupants of the hotel) which gave rise to long exchanges of fire lasting several minutes".