Bakassi Peninsula, Cameroon – In a significant development on Sunday morning, Cameroonian troops have successfully dislodged members of the pro-Biafra separatist group known as the Black Marine from Abana town, the former capital of the Bakassi Peninsula.
According to eyewitnesses on the ground, the operation to reclaim Abana was carried out by Cameroon’s Rapid d’intervention Battalions (BIR), who effectively recaptured the area from the pro-Biafra militants.
The Cameroonian authorities had previously deployed additional troops to the Isangele subdivision, effectively surrounding the town. This deployment even extended to the residential quarters of oil companies operating in the region.
Tensions had escalated when the rebel group engaged Cameroonian troops in a gunfight in Abana. Henry Edet, an operational coordinator of the Biafra National League (BNL), urged the Black Marine, reportedly an arm of the BNL, to retreat from Abana.
Just a few days ago, the BIR troops launched airstrikes at the Ine Mba forest in the Idabato subdivision of the Bakassi Peninsula, specifically targeting Black Marine militants. Eyewitnesses reported that two helicopters dropped explosives in the area, resulting in the destruction of militant camps. Thankfully, no casualties were reported in this clash between the militants and the Joint Border Forces of Nigeria and Cameroon in the Gulf of Guinea.
This operation underscores the ongoing efforts by Cameroonian authorities to maintain stability in the Bakassi Peninsula and their determination to quell separatist movements in the region. The situation remains fluid, and the international community is closely monitoring developments in this area.
