Landmine kills 4 Cameroonian soldiers

By Peter Kum

MAROUA, Cameroon (AA) - Four Cameroonian soldiers have been killed and several others injured in a landmine explosion in the country’s Far North region, military sources told Anadolu Agency on Friday.

The soldiers were patrolling in Cameroon’s Mayo-Tsanaga department when their vehicle hit a mine on Thursday night, Gen. Bouba Dobekreo, commander of a regional joint force, said.

The explosion led to the death of four soldiers and wounded several others, Dobekreo said, adding that the act has not yet been claimed but carries all the hallmarks of the Boko Haram terror group.

In the past months Boko Haram has been planting landmines in Cameroon’s Far North.

Last Tuesday, a soldier was killed after a device exploded near the Nigerian border.

Cameroon is part of a joint task force created by Lake Chad Basin countries -- Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Benin -- aimed at eradicating the Nigerian militant group.

The insurgent group has been waging a war against Nigeria and neighboring states that has killed more than 100,000 people and displaced more than two million others over the last seven years.