Sayeegu, Sambiluk deserted for fear of reprisal attacks
Two communities- Sayeegu and Sambiluk in the Northern Region- engaged in a long-standing long dispute have been deserted because the resident fear of reprisal attacks.
Advertisement
The two communities have become ghost towns following renewed clashes over a parcel of land which led to the death of seven persons, including the chief of Sayeegu last Sunday morning.
Death toll
While the Northern Regional Police Command puts the death toll in the conflict at four, some residents in the area claim seven people lost their lives, including the Chief of Sayeegu.
The Northern Regional Police Commander, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ACP), Mr Patrick Sarpong told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the police had so far retrieved four dead bodies from the bush who were yet to be identified.
He said although the police and the military team had intensified their patrols in the two communities to prevent any possible reprisal attacks and the spillover of the violent clashes in adjoining communities, the situation remained tense as all residents, including women and children, had deserted the two communities.
He said no arrest has been made so far.
Residents
Some residents who had fled the area told the Daily Graphic that although there was heavy military and police presence in the two communities, they still feared for their lives and, therefore, had to leave in the interest of their own safety.
According to them, a similar incident happened in April last year which claimed the lives of, at least, 22 people, while more than 70 houses were burnt down
