Conakry (AFP) - A group of Guinean activists went on hunger strike Tuesday to demand the safe return of thousands of villagers they say have fled their homes amid Ebola-related unrest in the south.
The action follows the murders in September of an eight-member Ebola education team attacked by angry locals in Womey, a town at the epicentre of the deadly outbreak.
The army has been deployed in the town since the killings, and many inhabitants have fled to the surrounding forests, fearing reprisals by troops, according to residents and journalists who recently visited.
"We are on hunger strike to demand the demilitarisation of Womey and the return of all local residents to their homes," said the group's spokesman Faya Millimono, the leader of an opposition party.