Gbiniyiri Land Dispute: Man Shot Dead While Attempting to Charge Phone at Kalba
- A man in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District has been killed by assailants amid the Gbiniyiri land dispute
- The Gbiniyiri conflict has already claimed over 30 lives and displaced more than 50,000 people
- The government has said 13,253 Ghanaians have been displaced and crossed over into Côte d’Ivoire
A man was killed by unknown assailants near Kalba, a suburb of the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District in the Savannah Region, amid the continued Gbiniyiri land dispute.
The victim was travelling from his community, called Uro, which has no electricity, to Kalba to charge his phone.
Source: Facebook
Adom News reported that he was ambushed on September 7 and shot while on his motorcycle, killing him.
The Gbiniyiri conflict has already claimed over 30 lives and displaced more than 50,000 people.
The government has said 13,253 Ghanaians have been displaced and crossed into Côte d’Ivoire following clashes over land at Gbiniyiri in the Savannah Region.
The latest killing comes despite the deployment of 400 police personnel to the conflict zone.
A resident told Joy News there is growing distrust of the government.
“Some of us suspected this to happen because the guys are still around in Kalba town, and if you deceive yourself and go there, they will just end your life like this farmer.
"To me, this reaffirms the fears and mistrust in the system. The authorities need to do more than just talk and go."
In comments to YEN.com.gh, Mohammed Kataba, a security analyst, stressed the importance of reconciliation efforts when the dust settles on the tensions.
"When they come back to the community, people are going to accuse people, saying ‘you are the one who attacked my family member.'"
“There should be a group or body that will handle a long-term reconciliation or a long-term integration.”
France 24 also reported that the violence broke out on August 24 in Gbiniyiri, which is located near the Ivorian border.
The recent conflict has been traced to the sale of a parcel of land to a private developer by a chief without broader community consent.
When the developer attempted to access the land to begin work, it led to the recent eruption of violence.
Chief’s son, four others among first deaths
The son of a chief and four other people were among those killed at Gbiniyiri, marking some of the first deaths.
When the developer began work, some community members resisted, and the tensions escalated when the chief and his son visited the site and were attacked.
According to Joy News, the chief of Gbiniyiri was forced to flee his palace and seek shelter at the Kalba chief's palace following the clash.
Source: Facebook
Minister for the Interior Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka, earlier, said work is ongoing to ensure calm in Gbiniyiri.
"...We are setting up a committee to investigate all this and then come out with a report on how best we can avoid this from recurring."
Kusasi chief reportedly killed by unknown assailants
YEN.com.gh also previously reported that the Kusasi Chief in the Ashanti Region and head of the Kadi Divisional Area in Binduri, Abdul-Malik Azenbe, was shot dead by unknown assailants.
He was killed on July 22, 2025, at his home near the Asawase F-line community centre. According to eyewitnesses, two men on a motorbike fired multiple shots at the chief before speeding off.
Source: YEN.com.gh
