APA-Freetown (Sierra Leone) Members of an armed group blamed for raiding a barracks and the main prison in Freetown are still at large and being sought by the country’s security forces, APA can report on Wednesday.
Sierra Leoneans woke up to heavy barrages of gunfire in the early hours of last Sunday as rebel soldiers targeted the Wilberforce Barracks and the Pademba Road Prisons, stealing arms and ammunitions and setting inmates free.
By the time they were beaten back by regular troops, 21 people including 13 government soldiers were killed in the apparent attempt to seize power from current President Julius Maada Bio who was re-elected for a second term last June.
Several arrests have been made since the incident.
A list of wanted suspects has been put out by the government promising reward for information on the attackers still on the run.
Sierra Leone experienced a brutal 11-year civil war which ended in 2002.
Last year, dozens were killed as government forces clashed with protesters who demanded the resignation of Mr. Bio over the country’s cost of living crisis.
WN/as/APA