Cameroon annuls Feb 9 polls in parts of anglophone regions

Cameroon's constitutional council announced Tuesday it was annulling a legislative election held earlier this month in parts of the country's conflict-torn anglophone regions, state television reported.

The council said the election would have to be rerun in the Lebialem constituency, a hot spot for violence in the English-speaking South West region, according to the report.

Another vote will also be held in 10 constituencies in the North West region, which has seen the worst of the violence during the long-running separatist conflict, it added.

The two anglophone regions have been rocked by deadly violence as armed separatists campaign for independence from the rest of Cameroon, which is majority French-speaking.

Separatist fighters had called on people in the two regions not to take part in the municipal and legislative elections on February 9, issuing threats to anyone who planned to vote. One of the two main opposition parties also called for a boycott.

For the most, voting passed off peacefully across the country, apart from one incident in North West region.

But voter turnout was low across the country, particularly so in the two English-speaking regions, according to the African Union.

The authorities in Cameroon have so far failed to release either official results, or figures for the turnout.

Fighting between the two sides -- and reprisal attacks on civilians -- have left more than 3,000 dead in the two western regions during the three-year conflict.

Tuesday's announcement from the constitutional council came as the government was put under increasing pressure over the deadly violence in the region.

Human Rights Watch on Tuesday accused Cameroon's armed forces of taking part in the killing of at least 21 civilians on February 14 in a remote part of North West region. The army has denied the accusations.