1. Home
  2. West Africa
  3. Senegal

Senegalese soldiers killed in Casamance

An independence movement, the Mouvement des forces democratiques de Casamance (MFDC), denied on Wednesday responsibility for the death of two Senegalese soldiers in an exchange of fire with unidentified men near the southern town of Kolda. Two others were wounded.

AFP reported that the attackers were believed to be members of the MFDC but speaking from The Gambia, MFDC spokesman Alexandre Djiba told IRIN his men were "under orders not to shoot first".

However, he will meet all commanders in the MFDC's southern zone on Thursday in Guinea-Bissau to ascertain what happened.

AFP reports this incident as the third since a ceasefire monitoring body was set up on 4 February. The media has reported one Senegalese soldier killed on Friday and the death of two other people in an attack on three tourist buses on Sunday. The attacks have come in the midst of a presidential electoral campaign.


This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

Share this article

Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

Become a member of The New Humanitarian

Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

Join