Madar (Dakar) - A joint operation by Senegal's army and gendarmerie on Tuesday, 27 October 2026 in the Lyndiane area of Colobane in Ziguinchor, southern Senegal, led to the detention of 28 people at Magoukouro, the seat of the political wing of the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (MFDC), security sources told the Senegalese Press Agency (APS).
According to the same sources, phones, documents and flags described as Casamance flags were seized during the operation, which took place without major incident. Dakaractu, citing a source close to the case, said those detained, including nine women, were handed over with the seized items to the Ziguinchor gendarmerie's research section for further investigation.
APS said Magoukouro was a gathering place where members met every year for prayers in memory of deceased leaders, and concordant sources said it also hosted meetings and commemorations. The operation took place on the seventh anniversary of the 2019 killing in Mlomp, in Bignona department, of Abdou Elinkine Diatta, the self-proclaimed successor of Father Augustin Diamacoune Senghor.
Casamance, separated from northern Senegal by The Gambia, has seen a conflict since December 1982 whose intensity has dropped sharply in recent years, APS recalled. The authorities and the MFDC signed ceasefire agreements in May 1991 and July 1993. No detailed official account from the army or gendarmerie had been released at this stage.
