Thirty-four Cameroonian soldiers from the elite Rapid Intervention Brigade were missing after an army vessel capsized off the country’s southeastern coast on Sunday, official said on Monday.
A statement by the Defense Minister, Joseph Beti Assomo noted that the ship was carrying 37 people, including crew, and was on its way to the city of Bakassi for refueling when it sank on Sunday morning.
“Thirty-four personnel are missing till now,” he said. “Three soldiers were rescued but the boat seems to have sunk right down.”
He said the circumstances of the accident were not yet clear but the waters were very choppy when it happened.
The Rapid Intervention Brigade is in the front line of Cameroon’s fight against Boko Haram terrorists in the north.
The terrorists group has carried out frequent attacks in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria which it originated from.
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