At least three people were killed and about 15 others injured, including a police officer, on Tuesday when an armed group from Gomoa communities stormed the New Winneba settlement in the Effutu Municipality of Ghana’s Central Region, police and local reports said.
The clash erupted around 10:40 a.m. when a mob of roughly 300 people from Gomoa Oguakrom, Gomoa Yenkuadze and Gomoa Pomadze, some armed with guns, cutlasses, stones and sticks, entered New Winneba and attacked residents. Attackers targeted shops and private homes, assaulting inhabitants and damaging property, according to a statement from the Central Regional Police Command.
The violence is linked to a longstanding land ownership dispute, with the Gomoa residents reportedly claiming the land on which the relatively new settlement of New Winneba stands. Injured people, including a security officer, were taken to the Trauma and Specialist Hospital in Winneba for treatment. Police have not yet released the names of the deceased as investigations continue.
Officers from the Winneba Divisional Headquarters and Agona Swedru District patrols were quickly deployed. The Inspector-General of Police ordered additional reinforcements from national headquarters, including armoured vehicles. By early afternoon, authorities said the situation had been brought under control, though security personnel remained in the area to prevent further escalation.
Minority Leader and Effutu Member of Parliament Alexander Afenyo-Markin appealed for calm, urging residents of both Efutu and Gomoa to “smoke the peace pipe.” He emphasised the deep historical and cultural ties between the two groups.
“Efutu and Gomoa were not built on violence,” Afenyo-Markin said in a radio interview, calling on both sides to pursue dialogue and peaceful coexistence rather than allow a new conflict to damage their longstanding relationship.
Land disputes between Gomoa and Effutu communities have simmered for years, occasionally flaring into tension over boundaries and ownership. Police said investigations into Tuesday’s violence are ongoing.
