At Least 10 Killed in Guinea Gold Mining Crackdown Clashes
At least 10 people were killed and 13 injured in northeastern Guinea during clashes between protesters and security forces enforcing an artisanal gold mining ban, Al Jazeera and AP News reported, citing the government. Guinea's Ministry of Territorial Administration said late Thursday that fighting broke out Wednesday in Siguiri's Balato area when a patrol targeted unauthorized gold mining, Al Jazeera reported. Protesters set up barricades blocking the patrol before gunfire was exchanged, with the ministry not specifying who opened fire and noting that judicial authorities were tasked with determining responsibility, according to Al Jazeera and AP News.
Casualties, Arrests, and Regional Exodus
Provisional ministry figures listed five unidentified foreign nationals among the 10 dead, while the 13 injured included both civilians and security personnel, Al Jazeera reported. Two pickup trucks and a security forces truck were burned, and protesters took a firearm and a motorcycle, the ministry said, according to AP News. Guinea banned artisanal gold mining in Siguiri on November 2 over environmental damage, including chemical river pollution and farmland destruction, and authorities arrested more than 1,200 people earlier this month before opening the first mass trials this week, Al Jazeera reported. Mining.com.au has previously reported a further 149 detentions in Siguiri and Kérouané. At the Siguiri Gold Mine in Guinea, prior clashes involving as many as 10,000 people in pit invasions have occurred between AngloGold Ashanti and artisanal miners operating outside agreed areas, according to Mining Technology.
According to the UN Environment Programme, artisanal and small-scale gold mining supports the livelihoods of over 300,000 people in Guinea, Al Jazeera and AP News noted. Neighbouring Mali said last week that about 100,000 people had arrived in Bamako and nearly 60,000 in the border town of Kouremale after leaving Guinea, while Burkina Faso reported Friday that 45,406 of its nationals had been repatriated, Al Jazeera reported. Guinea's gold mining crackdown has strained relations with neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, according to MINING.COM.