Scores of armed men loot businesses in Casamance

A group of armed men went on a looting spree on Tuesday evening in a village some 10 km east of Ziguinchor, the main town in southern Senegal's Casamance area, according to media reports. The group looted six shops and a tourist camp site in Niaguis village, the French news agency, AFP reported an official source as saying. The attack was reportedly led by members of the Mouvement des forces democratiques de Casamance (MFDC) which has been fighting for self-rule for Casamance since 1982, according to AFP. It said its main perpetrators allegedly conscripted around 50 young men to help carry out the raid and requisitioned a local official's car to carry the stolen goods. Following the attack, during which one Senegalese soldier was slightly injured, the armed men headed for the border with Guinea-Bissau, AFP reported the source as saying. A military base in Niaguis has reportedly been unable to stop the raids due to its reduced capacity, AFP added. In a similar attack on Saturday around 30 armed men, presumed to be MFDC rebels, looted several shops in an area of Ziguinchor.