Sierra Leone has imposed a nationwide curfew after attempts to break into the military armory at the Wilberforce barracks in the early hours of Sunday November 26th, 2023.
The minister of information in Sierra Leone, Chernoh Bah while announcing the countrywide curfew said it was meant to help in arresting the suspects.
‘To enable the security forces to continue the process of apprehending the suspects, a nationwide curfew is declared with immediate effect across the country. We strongly advise citizens to stay indoors,” a statement by the ministry of information and civic education noted.
However, the government assured citizens of the West African country that the state security forces are in control of the situation.
Concurrently, the reassurance was reiterated by the president of Seirra Leone, Julius Maada Bio who acknowledged the attack on his official X account.
“As the combined team of our Security Forces continue to root out the remnant of the fleeing renegades, a nationwide curfew has been declared and citizens are encouraged to stay indoors,” President Juluis Maada noted.
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Details of the Unfortunate Attack
The attack at Wilberforce barracks happened on Sunday, 26th November morning where some unidentified individuals attacked the military armory.
Of note, the barracks are located in Sierra Leone’s capital Freetown.
However, according to official statements, the attackers were repelled by Sierra Leone’s Security Forces and calm was restored.
Notably, there were no reports of casualties by press time.
Also, Security in Sierra Leone has been heightened as business and transport disruptions are likely to be experienced in the coming hours as security operations and investigations on the attack continue.
Skirmishes in Sierra Leone
The West African country has been going through a political crisis following presidential and general elections in June this year.
Consequently, in September, the United States government-imposed visa restrictions on Sierra Leone’s government officials.
According to the US, the government officials were responsible for undermining democracy in Sierra Leone.
This was due to the disputed June 2023 General Election, which Western observers say lacked transparency.
Further, US secretary of state, Anthony Blinken noted that the election had been rigged and manipulated, leading to the visa restrictions.
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“Under this policy, the United States will pursue visa restrictions for those believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining democracy in Sierra Leone, including through the manipulation or rigging of the electoral process; intimidation of voters, election observers, or civil society organizations through threats or acts of physical violence; or the abuse or violation of related human rights in Sierra Leone,” Mr. Blinken said in a statement.
Concurrently, after the June elections, the Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone (ECSL) came under heavy criticism from Western observers.
However, local observers including the African Union (AU), and the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) declared the controversial election as free and fair.
