YAOUNDE, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Cameroonian troops have rescued 11 kidnapped victims during a mopping-up operation in Southwest, one of the two troubled English-speaking regions of the country, the army said Friday night.

The operation took place Friday afternoon in Lebialem, a division of the region where armed separatists are known to train and host separatist fighters, officials said.

The hostages, including a Catholic priest and three women in their late 40s, were abandoned by the gunmen after a tough gunfight with troops, according to local authorities.

The victims, some of whom had life-threatening injuries, had been held hostage by armed separatists in an unknown location of the division for over a month, according to security reports.

They were abducted after separatists suspected them of conniving with government forces, locals said.

Armed separatists want to create an independent nation in the two English-speaking regions of Northwest and Southwest, and have been clashing with government forces since 2017. Enditem

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