Five persons have been killed and numerous others seriously injured in a brutal clash between two opposing parties of illegal timber loggers in the wooded area of Sehwi Agyemadiem in the Juaboso District of the Western North Region.
Tensions over control of valuable logging areas are said to have been the catalyst for the violent altercation that broke out early Tuesday.
Sources claim that both groups had been involved in illegal timber harvesting, which is becoming a bigger problem in the area.
With the factions brandishing machetes, pump-action firearms, and other weapons frequently employed in their illegal activities, witnesses claim the altercation swiftly descended into anarchy.
A Mitsubishi pickup truck with the registration number GE 9075-17 was set on fire during the rioting.
Official identification of the deceased, who are thought to have belonged to one of the competing gangs, is still pending. Police have been called in to help restore order, move the dead, and begin investigating the incident.
For immediate medical care, the wounded victims have been taken to Sefwi Asawinso hospitals.
Concerns about the growing threat of illegal logging in the area have been rekindled by this violent occurrence. To stop additional damage to the region’s natural resources and to reduce violence associated with these activities, local officials and residents are demanding that forestry rules be strictly enforced.
The Kontihene of Sehwi Wiawso Traditional Area and Chief of Sehwi Boinzan, Nana Ofori Ahenkan II, called on the government to take firm action against illicit activities in the area’s forest reserves just weeks prior to this conflict.
Authorities are under pressure to increase enforcement and stop additional killings connected to illegal logging since tensions are still high.
