January 18, 2021, Mautu, Fako State, Southern Ambazonia, Cameroon Occupation Forces launched a brutal attack on innocent and unarmed civilians. Eyewitnesses recounted that more than nine civilians, including women and children, lost their lives in the gunfire. The victims, who posed no threat, were mercilessly targeted, abducted, tortured, and ultimately killed by the occupation forces.

The indiscriminate shooting and execution of civilians, including vulnerable women and children, demonstrate the deliberate use of violence as a tool of oppression. This heinous act not only resulted in the loss of innocent lives but also left the surviving community members in a state of profound grief, fear, and uncertainty.

These recurring attacks reflect a broader pattern of state-sanctioned brutality, systematically designed to terrorize and subjugate the people of Ambazonia. The mass killings, torture, and targeted executions violate fundamental human rights, including the right to life and security.

This act constitutes a War Crime under multiple international legal frameworks. The Geneva Conventions of 1949, particularly Common Article 3, explicitly prohibit the killing, torture, and inhumane treatment of civilians and individuals not actively engaged in combat. By abducting, torturing, and executing civilians, the Cameroon Occupation Forces committed grave breaches of international humanitarian law.

Additionally, Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) clearly defines the intentional killing of civilians, the destruction of civilian property, and acts of torture as war crimes. The targeted killing of women and children further violates Article 7 of the Rome Statute, which classifies systematic and widespread attacks against civilian populations as crimes against humanity. Moreover, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) guarantees the right to life, freedom, and protection from arbitrary killings, all of which were violated in this massacre.

The indiscriminate gunfire and mass executions serve as a clear demonstration of extrajudicial killings, a violation that demands urgent international intervention. The global community must take action to hold the perpetrators accountable, conduct thorough investigations, and ensure justice for the victims. If such war crimes go unpunished, they set a dangerous precedent, emboldening further atrocities and worsening the suffering of innocent civilians. Justice and accountability are imperative to ending impunity and ensuring the protection of fundamental human rights.

GENOCIDE IN AMBAZONIA