Article author:
Reuters
Umaru Fofana and Cooper Inveen
FREETOWN — Dozens killed in anti-government protests in Sierra Leone, police and other sources said Thursday, previously He said the death toll rose sharply from the Shocked citizens remained behind closed doors in the capital, Freetown, during the day's clashes.
Six police officers and at least he 21 civilians were killed, sources said. Frustrated by economic hardships, hundreds took to the streets in what was seen as a government failure to mitigate the effects of rising prices.
For Sierra Leone, particularly the West African country. riots in Freetown, the capital of the United States, are very rare. Several people have died in isolated protests in other cities in recent years.
A Freetown video seen by Reuters showed police firing into the crowd.
His 19-year-old Sulai Manturay, who lives in East Freetown, made a short march before police began firing tear gas, then watched demonstrators shot from their porches. said.
"I think people are shocked. It's not a country we know. Sierra Leone is a peaceful place," he told Reuters.
President Julius Maada Bio said the circumstances surrounding Wednesday's event would be "fully investigated."
Other confirmed images from Freetown showed clouds of smoke and tear gas as large crowds threw stones and burned tires, and armed police patrolled the streets. rice field.
Protests were concentrated in the opposition's northern center and capital.
In a country where more than half of its approximately eight million people live below the poverty line, according to the World Bank, rising prices for basic commodities have long suppressed public dissatisfaction. It's here.
Wednesday's death toll included two police officers killed in Freetown, three in the northern town of Kamakwiye, and one in the northern city of Makeni. Police Inspector General William Fire Szell told Reuters.
At least 13 civilians were shot dead in Freetown, an official at the city's main morgue said. Hospital sources said he killed four civilians in Kamakviye and four more in Makeni.
An eerie calm returned to Freetown on Thursday, according to a resident.
Internet observatory NetBlocks said the internet was cut off Wednesday for two hours and then overnight. .
Police said the curfew will remain in effect from 7pm. From Thursday to 7am local time after the government imposed 3pm to 3pm. A curfew was imposed on Wednesday to stem the riots. (Reporting by Umaru Fofana and Cooper Inveen; Writing by Nellie Peyton; Editing by Mark Heinrich and John Stonestreet)
