大象传媒

Police in Sierra Leone say they are continuing the manhunt for people involved in what the government has described as a planned and coordinated attack on the capital.

Gunmen broke into an armoury and several prisons in Freetown on Sunday, enabling the escape of almost 2,000 inmates. Installations outside the capital were also attacked.

The authorities are offering rewards for anyone with information on perpetrators or prisoners still at large.

A night-time curfew remains in place throughout the country.

Stella Bangura is a TV presenter in Sierra Leone. She told Newsday that the attack went on from early morning until late in the afternoon: 鈥淚t literally felt like the battle was right behind our house鈥�.It sounded like somebody had detonated a bomb. There was sporadic gunfire, and everyone is wondering what is going on鈥�There is the assumption there was an attempted coup because no-one has the death wish to go and attack a military barracks鈥�I don鈥檛 see an armed robber going to a military barracks and having such confrontation.鈥�

She said calm had now been restored, but feared the impacts of the current curfew, which is in place from 9pm to 6am: 鈥淭he curfew is indefinite, so we don鈥檛 know how long this is going to last for鈥�and this is really worrying because we鈥檙e entering the festive season鈥�This is going to affect people鈥檚 activity, their way of life and鈥�their income鈥�There鈥檚 a really big nightlife in Sierra Leone so (it鈥檚) definitely going to have a big impact on that.鈥�

(Picture: Shows soldiers checking vehicles at a roadblock in Freetown, Sierra Leone as a night curfew is put in place. Credit: Ibrahim Barrie via EPA.)

Show less