Pope Francis on Wednesday
condemned a massacre of children in a Cameroon school Saturday
as a "cruel and senseless act".
"I join in the pain of the families of the young students
barbarically killed at Kumba in Cameroon last Saturday," Francis
said at the end of his weekly general audience.
A group of armed men entered the school and killed at least
eight children.
"I feel great dismay for such a cruel and senseless act, which
ripped from life the little innocents while they were following
their lessons in school.
"May God illuminate hearts so that similar acts are never again
repeated and so that the tortured regions of the north west and
south west of the country may finally rediscover peace.
"I hope arms will fall silent and the safety and security of
all may be guaranteed, along with the right for all young people
to an education and a future".
The Kumba school massacre took place at Mother Francisca
International Bilingual Academy during the Anglophone Crisis in
Cameroon.
Around noon on 24 October 2020, men in civilian clothing arrived
on motorcycles and stormed the school. With machetes and guns,
they killed at least eight children and wounded at least twelve.
Some children were also injured when they jumped from windows to
escape. According to an official, the dead children were all
between 12 and 14 years old.
According to one of the survivors, there had been twelve
attackers, most of whom were dressed in military or police
uniforms. A local claimed that the school had been making
regular payments to the separatists in the area in return for
safety; the school would not confirm this.
No one claimed responsibility for the attack.Local authorities
blamed Ambazonian separatists, while the Cameroonian government
and separatist movements accused each other. The Cameroonian
government said that around 10 separatist fighters had carried
out the massacre. The Ambazonia Governing Council quickly
claimed to possess evidence that the Cameroonian Army was
responsible, while the Interim Government of Ambazonia drew
parallells to the Ngarbuh massacre. Cameroonian Communication
Minister Rene Sadi strongly denied that the Cameroonian Army had
been involved.
Separatists have a history of attacking schools, which some of
them regarded as legitimate targets because the French language
is taught as a mandatory subject. While students have been
abducted and mistreated numerous times throughout the Anglophone
Crisis, and several teachers have been killed, the attack on
Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy was the first
school massacre to take place during the war.
The attack was condemned by the United Nations. Matthias Z.
Naab, the Humanitarian Coordinator in Cameroon, stated that he
was "shocked and outraged by the killing of innocent school
children which were attending school to get an education". The
World Health Organization offered medical supplies to hospitals
in the area.
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