Umaru Fofana, BBC Reporter in Sierra Leone, has narrated a horrible experience he encountered in the hands of Sierra Leonean Soldiers and rebels twenty five (25) years ago.

On the anniversary of this traumatic event, Umaru Fofana recalled how he was shot on the leg and nearly killed by some soldiers that night.

Narrating his ordeal on a Facebook post, he stated how they attempted to amputate his right hand and how they dropped flames of litted plastic bag on his bare back for resisting.

See his full narration below:

“I would have been shot dead this night, 25 years ago. Probably about this time. After one of a group of soldiers had shot me in the leg, he and his colleagues took me to their checkpoint at Juba. They read the notebook I was carrying. Then they got even angrier, apparently by its content. Not long after, they commandeered a passing Mercedes Benz car. Coincidentally it belonged to my former college mate, Franklyn Ebemessie. He was driving. They dumped me in the boot – two soldiers to my head side and two rebels on the other side. They took me to a hideout. There they attempted to amputate my right hand. I resisted, instinctively. Then they lit a plastic bag. Tore my shirt off. Dropped the flames on my back. Etc. They later dragged me to the back of the compound, as I wailed. Waiting for nightfall to finish me off. Franklyn would later tell me that those inside the car were discussing how they planned to kill me that night. They did try it. How I survived? That’s for another day. For now, I give God the glory. Alhamdulilah.”