Pope Leo XIV has arrived in Cameroon carrying a message of peace for one of Africa's most protracted conflicts, as separatist fighters in the country's English-speaking west announced a three-day pause in fighting to coincide with the visit. The pope is also holding talks with President Paul Biya, whose government has been locked in a deadly standoff with armed groups for nearly a decade.

The conflict, which erupted in 2016, pits Cameroonian government forces against separatists seeking an independent state they call Ambazonia, carved out of the country's two anglophone — English-speaking — regions. These areas, which were once administered by Britain before joining French-speaking Cameroon at independence, have long complained of political and economic marginalisation. The crisis has killed around 6,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands, according to the United Nations, and shows little sign of a negotiated resolution.

In Bamenda — the largest city in the anglophone region and the epicentre of the violence — the pope's visit has been met with cautious but palpable hope. "As he puts his feet on this soil, we should have peace," said Giovanni Mbuna, a youth centre manager who was himself previously kidnapped by armed groups, one of many civilians caught in the crossfire. Crowds gathered at the St. Joseph Metropolitan Cathedral ahead of the papal arrival, signalling the significance many attach to the visit.

Yet religious and civil society leaders caution that achieving lasting peace will require more than symbolic gestures. Archbishop Andrew Fuanya Nkea warned that the crisis has evolved well beyond its political origins, with kidnapping and extortion now widespread and, in his words, "difficult to distinguish separatist fighters from criminal groups." Legal analyst Joseph Fru Awah argues that any durable settlement must address what he calls the "incomplete decolonisation" of the anglophone regions, including questions of identity, representation, and justice for victims.

The pope's visit nonetheless represents a significant moment of international attention for a crisis that has often been overshadowed by conflicts elsewhere. While a relative lull in violence has been reported in recent days, attacks and abductions continue. Many residents and observers hope the visit will help restart meaningful dialogue between the government and armed factions — and remind the wider world that Cameroon's slow-burning war remains far from over.