Accra — Seven illegal miners were killed late on Saturday in a firefight with soldiers at an AngloGold Ashanti mine in Ghana, the West African country's armed forces said in a statement on Sunday.
About 60 illegal miners carrying locally manufactured rifles and other weapons breached the mine’s security fence at around 11pm (1am) on Saturday and fired on a military patrol, it said, adding that seven miners were killed and one injured in a shootout.
Ghana’s President, John Dramani Mahama, ordered an immediate investigation into the incident at the Obuasi mining site in the Ashanti Region, the presidency said in a statement on Sunday.
The government asked AngloGold Ashanti to cover the medical expenses and cost of burials, it said.
Reuters
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