Cameroon is observing a period of mourning after nine soldiers were killed on Friday in the country’s Southwest region when an improvised explosive device (IED) struck their vehicle during a relief operation in Malende, Muyuka district.
According to military sources, eight soldiers died instantly following the blast, while a ninth succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
The attack targeted a vehicle of the Motorized Intervention Battalion (BIM), a unit of the Motorized Infantry Brigade (BRIM) of the Cameroonian Armed Forces.
The incident has drawn strong reactions across the nation, with calls for unity in the face of ongoing insecurity in the region.
Shanda Tonme, President of the Independent Commission against Corruption and Discrimination (COMICODI) and the Popular Movement for Dialogue and Reconciliation (MPDR), sent a letter of condolence to Defence Minister Joseph Beti Assomo, expressing the nation’s collective grief.
“The brutal, spontaneous, cowardly, and barbaric murder of nine of our soldiers deeply saddens us and is a national shock,” Tonme wrote. “Our armed compatriots, assigned to the resolute defense of our territorial integrity and our national unity, have fallen on the field of honor.
It is hard for the families, for the women and children at this back-to-school time. One can imagine the pain, the loss, the desolation, and the tears.”
He urged the country to stand behind its defense forces, emphasising that this was “not the time for controversy, but for national mourning and unity.”
The letter also underlined the need for continued support for the military, condemning those behind the attack as “bandits, criminals and lawless mercenaries” while reaffirming the government’s stance on defending national integrity.
The explosion comes amid persistent security challenges in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions, where clashes between armed separatist groups and government forces have intensified in recent years.
Families of the fallen soldiers have been offered condolences, as the nation reflects on the heavy cost of maintaining peace and security.
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