Cameroon War

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The Cameroon War (also known as the Hidden War, or the Cameroonian War of Independence) was a conflict in Cameroon between 1955 and 1964, initially as an independence struggle against French colonial rule, led by the Cameroonian Peoples Union (UPC), and then, after Cameroonian independence in 1960, as a civil war between the Cameroonian government and UPC rebels. The conflict began with riots against French colonial rule in 1955 before becoming an insurgency. Following independence in 1960, the first President of Cameroon, Ahmadou Ahidjo requested continued French military assistance to fight the UPC rebels. The Cameroonian Armed Forces, assisted by the French Army, largely defeated the rebellion by 1964 though clashes continued until 1971. Many people were killed in the conflict, mostly after independence during the civil war phase and in the Bamileke Region. Most estimates put the death toll in the range of tens of thousands, however other estimates reach hundreds of thousands. It has been described as a forgotten war because it occurred at the height of France's biggest colonial independence struggle, the Algerian War. The conflict continues to shape contemporary politics in Cameroon.