At least one person was feared dead and three others injured by gunfire on Thursday, after troops in Benin Republic cleared protesters in a flashpoint city three days before President Patrice Talon seeks re-election.
In recent times, protests have has been rife in the West African country’s opposition bastions ahead of Sunday’s vote, which critics say is skewed in Talon’s favour after the main opposition leaders were sidelined in a crackdown.
According to local officials, a column of military vehicles arrived quite early on Thursday to disperse demonstrators in the central city of Save, a flarepoint of opposition protests two years ago, where makeshift barricades of trees and tyres blocked a major road.
Troops initially fired tear gas, according to the locals who were present and then more detonations were heard as a soldier fired in the air from an armoured vehicle. It was not clear if they were live or anti-riot rounds.
Narrating his experience, the director of a local dispensary in Save said he had taken in one dead and six wounded by gunshots.
‘We admitted them at our clinic… One dead from a live round and six with bullet wounds,‘ said Jose Godjo, head of the Boni clinic in Save. ‘All the wounded have been transferred to hospital in Save.’
Save Mayor Denis Oba Chabi confirmed one person had died from gunshot wounds and he had transported three of the wounded to the hospital in his car.
‘We have no interest in burying more dead here,‘ he told correspondents, after explaining he tried to negotiate with protesters before the army arrived.
Save was deserted on Thursday afternoon with the army positioned around the city and on the main roads. Sporadic gunfire was still being heard around the city.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK