May 21, 2019, Muyuka, Fako State, Southern Ambazonia, a grave atrocity unfolded as Cameroon Occupation Forces unleashed a wave of violence against innocent civilians. Eyewitness accounts detail a horrifying scene in which unarmed individuals were abducted, subjected to brutal torture, and ultimately killed without provocation or justification.

Among the victims of this harrowing incident was a four-month-old child, whose untimely and senseless death epitomizes the callous disregard for human life displayed by the occupying forces. Reports from eyewitnesses recount the anguish of families torn apart and the inhumanity of the actions inflicted on defenseless members of the community.

This incident not only reflects the inhumane treatment of civilians during the ongoing conflict but also highlights a deliberate strategy of targeting the most vulnerable populations. Civilians, including women, children, and infants, were subjected to violence that violated the very essence of humanity.

Such actions, carried out with impunity, have left a community shattered, mourning the loss of loved ones and grappling with deep psychological scars. The events in Muyuka constitute War Crimes under International Law.

Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) explicitly identifies the targeting of civilians, including their abduction, torture, and killing, as grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. The deliberate killing of a four-month-old child exemplifies the crime of intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population, prohibited under Article 8(2)(e)(i) of the Rome Statute.

Additionally, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the Fourth Geneva Convention prohibit acts of inhuman treatment, torture, and violence against non-combatants, further emphasizing the illegality of such acts.

The intentional infliction of suffering and the targeting of innocent individuals, particularly vulnerable groups such as children, breaches customary international humanitarian law and the principles of distinction and proportionality, which require parties in a conflict to protect civilian lives and property.

By committing these acts, the Cameroon occupation forces violated not only the legal frameworks established to safeguard human rights during conflicts but also fundamental principles of humanity and justice, making their actions a clear and condemnable War Crime.

GENOCIDE IN AMBAZONIA