An uneasy calm is regularly settling in Freetown following gunfire over the weekend that threw Sierra Leone’s capital into panic mode.
Gunshots rang out early Sunday morning as armed males attacked Wilberforce barracks, the navy’s predominant encampment and one of many largest garrisons within the West African nation.
Movies on social media confirmed a number of inmates operating away from the Central Jail, popularly referred to as the Pademba Highway Jail, after the armed males additionally attacked the power and let out nearly all the about 1,000 individuals held there. A police station holding prisoners, too, was attacked. A number of non-civilians have been reported lifeless, however the dying toll is unclear.
In a televised address on Sunday night, about 17 hours after the primary gunshots have been fired, President Julius Maada Bio stated the assailants had been “rebuffed,” and that almost all of those that led the assaults had been arrested.
“I want to assure everybody who is resident in Sierra Leone that we have overcome this challenge,” he stated, talking from the presidential lodge which is nearly 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from the attacked barracks.
A number of navy checkpoints sprung up round Freetown on Monday. A couple of retailers within the central enterprise district opened and some individuals went to their workplaces, however faculties and banks remained closed, residents stated. A dusk-to-dawn curfew has additionally been imposed until additional discover and flights to and from the nation have been restricted to the curfew occasions.
The assaults got here amid a string of coups and counter-coups which have rocked West Africa since 2020. Though President Bio and different officers have been cautious to not label the rebellion an tried coup, many Sierra Leoneans have used that time period to explain the violent occasions.
“A lot of people are saying it was an attempt to topple the government,” stated Amadou Lamarana Bah, a journalist who tried to report even because the chaos broke out however was turned again by gun-pointing navy males. There was continued hypothesis about the true motive of the attackers as particulars proceed to trickle down from the authorities, he stated. “Others are saying it was an attempt to release some military officers who were in the prison. Things are not yet back to normal at all.”
‘We were expecting something’
Sunday’s occasions have been the fruits of tensions which have been brewing since extremely contested elections concluded in June. Following President Bio’s re-election, Samura Kamara, candidate of the opposition All Folks’s Congress (APC), instantly rejected the SLPP win, saying the outcomes weren’t credible. European Union observers, in addition to United States officers, had additionally stated outcomes by the electoral fee lacked transparency.
However Sunday’s assaults additionally got here as deep resentment swells amongst Sierra Leoneans who’re feeling the chew of a flailing economic system that was hit onerous, first by the COVID-19 pandemic, after which, the fallout of Russia’s battle on Ukraine. Many have directed their anger at President Bio who they accuse of jetting in another country on costly worldwide journeys.
These emotions deepened when dozens have been killed final August after police shot at crowds protesting towards excessive meals costs in Freetown, a uncommon prevalence in a rustic the place protests are often peaceable. No less than 21 civilians and 6 policemen died within the riots.
“What went down last year, even if it’s not directly related, I think created an environment where some people maybe sensed an opening,” stated Kieran Mitton, a King’s Faculty London researcher targeted on Sierra Leone. The crackdown, he stated, had made President Bio and the nation weak. “There’s a general sense of unhappiness. A lot of people I’ve spoken to said, ‘We were expecting something. Maybe not this but we were expecting something because the situation in the country is so, so bad.’”
Sierra Leoneans have usually referred to as out the overseas media for tracing the nation’s current points to brutal civil wars that raged for greater than a decade from the 90s till 2001 and noticed 1000’s killed and Sierra Leone’s economic system stagnate. However the current violence, some admit, does remind them of these darkish occasions.
“I was a teenager during the war,” Bah, the journalist stated. “I can recall when we went to a mosque to seek refuge and military guys came and were firing all over. Some people were killed. We survived, but officers pointing guns bring back those memories.”
For some, Sunday felt just like the nation took a number of steps again, whilst individuals attempt to transfer ahead. Sallu Kamuskay, a blogger, was caught making ready for a buddy’s marriage ceremony in one other a part of city when the gunshots rang out. He woke from a nap to see his telephone exploding with messages from frightened family and friends.
“I was shocked waking up to the news after we said ‘never again,’” Kamuskay stated.
An emergency all-day curfew meant the groom’s dad and mom have been caught within the space of the chaos. “Those of us who were already here had to proceed with the wedding while my friend’s father and mother joined via WhatsApp video call,” he stated.
‘Unidentified attackers’
It’s unclear who led the assaults on the navy armoury. Authorities stated the assailants have been “unidentified” and that investigations are persevering with to find out their identification.
Rumours of a potential coup had been swirling for months. In August, 14 high navy officers have been arrested for “subversion” or undermining authority. Their names weren’t disclosed.
However a minimum of two analysts informed Al Jazeera that about 50 individuals, together with navy officers and former insurgent commanders, may need been concerned within the Sunday assaults. The intruders appeared to have efficiently breached and eliminated some weapons from the barracks earlier than a particular guard hooked up to the presidency intervened and pushed them out of city, the consultants stated.
One video on social media confirmed residents peering right into a truck {that a} native fact-checking web site confirms was deserted by the attackers. Within the truck is a rifle, an RPG grenade launcher, bullet cartridges and navy fatigues.
Kars de Bruijne, West Africa lead at Clingendael Institute, a suppose tank, says it’s odd that the attackers went for an armoury and never a extra delicate spot as is common in coup makes an attempt.“You’d expect that they’d go to the State House,” de Bruijne stated, referring to the presidential lodge. “It’s possible they had plans to do that but they were facing a lot of resistance.” The inmates, he added, have been probably launched “to make sure they could create a lot of chaos”.
A few of those that died within the gunfire have been linked to Ernest Bai Koroma, the nation’s rapid previous president and a member of the opposition APC.
Idrissa “Leatherboot” Hamid Kamara, an ex-fighter who was imprisoned after the battle and who later joined the previous president’s safety workforce was one, in line with native media. A bodyguard hooked up to Koroma was additionally shot lifeless by the Sierra Leonean military, and one other was taken alive, in what gave the impression to be a raid on his dwelling.
Koroma distanced himself from the violence in a press release. “I’m deeply concerned over the unfolding events in Freetown, and I strongly condemn the grave breaches of state security,” the previous president wrote on social media.
A navy and police reshuffle might occur within the coming weeks, de Bruijne stated, as authorities attempt to unravel extra particulars.“My fear is that there’s going to be a very serious crackdown on the APC,” the knowledgeable added. If politicians are discovered to be concerned then they need to be accountable, he stated, however “the risk is that the authorities could overreact and that might lead to others being arrested who were not directly involved in this at all”.
Requires peace
President Bio’s tackle to the nation on Sunday night was soothing, in a rustic the place occasions have grow to be more and more politicised, and the place some say authorities officers have beforehand used inciteful language. After the killings final August, for instance, Bio and authorities officers had referred to as protesters “insurrectionists”.
On Sunday, Bio used impartial phrases like “individuals” and “attackers” and targeted on praising the “bravery” of the safety forces. He referred to as on Sierra Leoneans throughout get together traces to battle for the nation’s hard-earned peace.
“Even when it has been questionable if a coup was even in the cards, he has called a coup, when he has talked about political unrest, he has called it mutiny or treason,” stated Mitton of King’s Faculty, pondering the president’s angle change.
Ex-military and a one-time navy ruler, Bio is perhaps anticipated to have it clean with the military however that’s hardly the case, Mitton famous. “I think he would like to see himself as having the military on his side (but) that points to the relationship not being as simple as people assume. There are always factions within the military and if you have an alliance with one group, you will have some that feel a bit left out.”
Bio’s tone on Sunday hit the mark for many individuals throughout the nation, Bah, the journalist stated, even when persons are nonetheless dissatisfied with the financial challenges they face. “Sierra Leonans commended the way he addressed the situation,” he stated. “I don’t think people want military rule, all they want is for him to cut expenditure, especially travelling.”
Some say they need to maintain making progress.
“All we want is peace,” Kamuskay, the blogger, stated. “Even when people are not happy with the election results and the way the country is being run by this government, people still want peace.”