Rising cost of living sparks deadly protests

At least 27 people have died in anti-government protests in Sierra Leone, police and other sources said, sharply raising the death toll from the previous day’s clashes. Six police officers and at least 21 civilians were killed, the sources said, as hundreds took to the streets in frustration at economic hardship and a perceived failure by the government to cushion the impact of rising prices, The Guardian reports. The unrest is highly unusual for Sierra Leone, especially in Freetown. Long held in check, citizens’ frustrations have been exacerbated by rising prices for basic goods in a country where, according to the World Bank, more than half the population of about 8m people live below the poverty line. Wednesday’s death toll included two police officers killed in Freetown, police inspector general William Fayia Sellu said. At least 13 civilians were shot dead in Freetown, said staff at the city’s main mortuary. Hospital sources said four civilians were killed in Kamakwie and another four in Makeni. An eerie calm had returned to Freetown on Thursday, residents said, as stores were closed and people stayed in. The Internet was cut for two hours on Wednesday and again overnight, according to the internet observatory NetBlocks. Police said a curfew would remain in effect from 7pm to 7am local time from Thursday.