Galim: IED detected, destroyed by security elements
An improvised explosive device has been deactivated along the Galim-Keneghang stretch in Galim subdivision of the the West region by security elements this February 26, 2024.
The explosive device built up with a phone was detected at the moment the Divisional Officer (DO) of Galim, Tabi Chu Martin Agbor and his delegation were about heading to the royal palace of Bamendjing to take part in a traditional ceremony. The origin of the explosive device and who it was targeting remain unclear but many suspect it was targeting the DO’s convoy.
“We were already in Bamendjing to take part in the Mo’o ritual when security elements suddenly alerted us saying we should go to the palace for our security,” a witness told us.
“We were then informed that an explosive had just been detected in Galim. It is the same road we took before reaching here. Thank God it did not explode,” the witness added.
Local sources suspected the device was implanted by separatist fighters from the neighboring crisis hit North West region. Galim is a locality bordered by Balikumbat and Santa in the North West region and has in the past, been threatened by separatist incursions. The most recent one happened at the market square of Bamenyam on November 21, 2023 with a raid by separatist fighters which claimed the lives of at least 9 persons.
The new DO of the locality was recently installed and had as major priority to fight against insecurity in the zone. The administrator had worked with Governor Adolphe Lele Lafrique before his appointment as DO on Thursday January 18, 2024.