Equatorial Guinea shuts border with Cameroon over coup attempt

The border between Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea has been sealed for nearly two weeks due to the alleged coup attempt against Africa’s longest serving president Teodoro Obiang Nguema.

The attempt as reported by the French news portal Jeune Afrique took place overnight from Wednesday December 27 to Thursday December 28, 2017. The government subsequently confirmed the incident.

Some 31 mercenaries were also reported to have been arrested in southern Cameroon as they attempted to enter the country apparently to help execute the overthrow. This is the second such attempt, the first took place in 2004.

Foiled Equatorial Guinea coup, Cameroonian mercenaries complicit | Africanews https://t.co/PZsxguJalX

— Middle-East Oriental (@MidEastOriental) January 2, 2018

Locals on both sides say the closure is affecting their normal activities with some counting on losses during the clashes.

“I believe that the authorities from Equatorial Guinea pretend not to listen, because until today, we have no good response. And if there was good response, I believe that the local authorities from Kye Hmos would have given us enough information,” one citizen on the Cameroon side lamented.

Reports says clashes were reported on the common border area last Wednesday, shortly after the West African state said it had thwarted a coup against President Obiang Nguema.

State television TVGE said, government troops had shot dead a “mercenary” and “used gunfire to disperse others in the forests along the border.” They, however, did not specify how many “mercenaries” were involved or how long the clashes lasted.