This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/7390236.stm
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Senegalese bandits chop off ears | Senegalese bandits chop off ears |
| (about 13 hours later) | |
| Armed men have cut off the left ears of 16 villagers harvesting cashew nuts in Senegal's rebel-hit Casamance region. | Armed men have cut off the left ears of 16 villagers harvesting cashew nuts in Senegal's rebel-hit Casamance region. |
| "They tied our hands before cutting off one ear each," Lansana Manga, 31, told the AFP news agency. | "They tied our hands before cutting off one ear each," Lansana Manga, 31, told the AFP news agency. |
| This is the first case of such deliberate mutilation during the region's 26 years of conflict. | This is the first case of such deliberate mutilation during the region's 26 years of conflict. |
| A spokesman for one rebel group, the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance, said it was not involved in the attack, describing it as barbarous. | |
| "Our interest is to maintain calm until we can sit down with the government of Senegal and bring definitive peace to Casamance. We do not want civilians to be targeted," said the MDFC's Antoine Diamacoune. | |
| Harvest attack | |
| Mr Manga said they were harvesting the nuts in Niaguis, 20km from the regional capital, Ziguinchor, when they were approached by men dressed in military fatigues and armed with rifles. | Mr Manga said they were harvesting the nuts in Niaguis, 20km from the regional capital, Ziguinchor, when they were approached by men dressed in military fatigues and armed with rifles. |
| "We told them they did not have to do that but they said it was to punish us because we were in their territory," he said. | "We told them they did not have to do that but they said it was to punish us because we were in their territory," he said. |
| The cashew-nut harvest time has regularly seen as upsurge in violence and armed attacks. Cashew nuts are one of the area's main cash crops. | |
| The Gambia lies between Casamance and the rest of Senegal and the MFDC rebels started a war for independence in 1982. | The Gambia lies between Casamance and the rest of Senegal and the MFDC rebels started a war for independence in 1982. |
| A peace deal was signed in 2004 but the armed robbery remains common in the area, badly hitting its once vibrant tourist industry. | A peace deal was signed in 2004 but the armed robbery remains common in the area, badly hitting its once vibrant tourist industry. |