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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 12 Dec 2022 : 14:59:25
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https://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/headlines/senegalese-forces-reportedly-kills-3-wound-1
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#Headlines
Senegalese forces reportedly kills 3, wound 1
Dec 12, 2022, 9:41 AM | Article By: Momodou Jawo
Tragic struck the community of Karunorr village in the Foni Kansala District of the West Coast Region (WCR), as three youths were reportedly shot dead by Senegalese forces who are believed to be stationed in Cassamance, in the southern part of Senegal. Another (a fourth) victim is currently hospitalised at the Ndemban Clinic after being shot in the head, The Point has been reliably informed.
The corpses of Ebrima Colley, Demba Colley and Alhagie Colley were all at Edward Friancis Small Teaching Hospital for autopsy.
Almameh Gibba, the lawmaker of the area, said: “This is really devastating and shocking. We the people of Foni are left insecure to the stage that the Senegalese forces will brutalise and kill the people of Foni like hens and animals and they scot-free.
“The saddest thing is that the government has never even issued a press release to condemn the drone shelling’s that are occurring at the border. Again, the International Geneva Convention has stated that no one should shoot unarmed civilians. If they think they are attacked in their territory, let them arrest the individuals. Besides, we are now in an era of technology where a drone can identify what the individual has in position. This is not the first time, not the second time that the Senegalese Forces are shooting at people,” Hon. Gibba told The Point.
Hon. Gibba claimed that one Mamudou Bojang was also reportedly shot in Gifanga end around the border of Cassamance three days back.
“As a responsive government, your citizens are being slaughtered like hens and chickens and you don’t even have the audacity to condemn them or issue a press release to show dissatisfaction with what is happening. Are we not Gambians and tax payers? Do we not deserve protection like any other citizens who are protected?
“Former President Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara has been here for 30 years, but nobody heard this mess that’s happening today and likewise former President Yahya Jammeh who was here for 22 years.
“Is it a crime for the citizens of Foni to live around the border? Is it a crime for an old person or the youths to live on the border? Is it a crime to move within the borders of Cassamance and Senegal? If you go to the Farafenni end, people are moving freely with goods and services and in Foni here you dare not to enter, why?
“We have petitioned the government and we stand by that. We are now giving them a timeline for them to act or else we will decide our fate. We are going to monitor the incident. As I am speaking to you, the Defense Minister is here. I have been communicating with him since yesterday night and he has put a lot of effort into this incident. We will follow the due process of the law. We will make sure that we have correct documents and whatever happens tomorrow; we will raise those documents and say here - this is the cause of their deaths,” he stated.
The National Assembly Members of the entire five districts of Foni, he said, ‘wholeheartedly condemn the incident and the killings that is currently going on within the borders’.
“The Senegalese Forces that are stationed in the Cassamance, are the ones using drones to fire randomly on anybody crisscrossing within the borders. Now, the Senegalese helicopter is moving within the borderline and it’s even moving inside the country and goes back to Senegal. Is this normal? Are we serious as a state? If you go to Foni, you will see the helicopter moving in Senegal and coming to the Gambian soil. Did the Gambia security ever fire at the helicopter or more so an unarmed civilian? So, why are they shooting our unarmed civilians?
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| 1 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| toubab1020 |
Posted - 12 Dec 2022 : 15:07:35
RELATED TOPIC:
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https://standard.gm/govt-breaks-silence-on-shooting-of-foni-residents/
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By Lamin Cham on December 12, 2022
For the first time since four residents of Foñi were shot dead across the border in Casamance, the Gambia government yesterday issued a statement expressing regret over the deaths and vowing to investigate the circumstances.
In the latest incident Friday, three young men were killed by drones in Casamance while a fourth survived with serious injuries. Last month, a man from Gifanga village was killed in similar circumstances while his companion sustained injuries.
The incidents led to calls by the National Assembly Members of Foñi for the withdrawal of Senegalese forces in the area and allegations that government targets Foñi people with wrongful termination.
For the first time since the incidents, the government yesterday issued a statement saying: “In the wake of a recent press conference convened by National Assembly Members mainly from Foni constituencies on the 2nd of November 2022, The Gambia Government wishes to clarify serious unfounded allegations raised by the representatives.
Among a litany of complaints, the Honorable members raised concerns over the presence of ECOMIG forces in Foni, investigations into the deaths of certain individuals particularly, the death of one Yankuba Badjie, the unsubstantiated allegations of unfair termination and dismissal of Foni “citizens” from key civil and public service positions as well as targeting of people from Foni by the various Commissions of Inquiry.
The Gambia Government takes these statements seriously and wishes to restate for the benefit of the five National Assembly Members and the public that the security and territorial integrity of the country are paramount.
The presence of the ECOMIG forces across the country, the Foni Region inclusive, is necessitated by genuine security concerns exacerbated by a porous southern border. The ECOMIG have been instrumental in maintaining peace and security as The Gambia navigates its very sensitive transition.
The Government takes allegations of loss of all human life very seriously and is committed to carrying out all necessary investigations to ascertaining the circumstances.
With regard to the reports of the shooting of Yankuba Badjie, investigations have confirmed that Mr. Badjie died across the border in the Casamance region of Senegal. The late Mr. Badjie was non-Gambian, registered refugee with UNHCR and had resided at Gifanga village. Meanwhile, the Gambian authorities are closely working with their Senegalese counterparts regarding this case”.
However, the National Assembly Member for Kansala Almamy Gibba shared documents with Kerr Fatou purportedly to be Gambian birth certificates and ID cards of the victims.
“There are talks going around saying these people killed are Senegalese and they have refugee cards. Here is the evidence that these people are Gambians. I have the birth certificate of Demba Colley, the ID Card of Sulayman Colley and the ID Card of Alagie Manga,” Hon Gibba told Kerr Fatou.
The Standard too has seen documents purportedly refuge registration cards of the dead men leaked online.
Meanwhile, the Chief of Kansala Ali Nyassi has called on the people Foñi to handle the crisis with calm and promote peace in the area. He also disputed the version that the men went into Casamance to fetch firewood but declined to say what they went there for ”until the right time”.
Asked whether the victims might have been engaged in wrongdoing in Casammance, Hon Almamy Gibba told Kerr Fatou’s The Brunch programme that even if the victims committed a crime there, it does not warrant them to be shot on sight. ”I think the reasonable thing would have been to arrest them and bring them to justice,” he argued.
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