Unknown assailants have attacked the Northern Regional Police Command by opening fire on a barracks there on Thursday night.

The attack took place simultaneously while officers were out trying to trace the source of sporadic gunshots in Tamale.

Public Relations Officer of the Northern Regional Police Command ASP Ebenezer Tetteh said: “Last night at about 6.45pm, we heard sporadic gunshots in town, so our men had to be moved in quickly. While they were in town trying to keep peace and bring the situation under control, the assailants turned their attention on the barracks and the police station, so our men had to be tactically withdrawn to come and defend the station because we are there to keep peace.

“They’ve left their various homes and they are there to ensure that there is peace in the area, so, before they can keep the peace in the area, they must be alive first. So, they were withdrawn and they came to the police station,” ASP Tetteh said.

According to him, the Police are not surprised about the attack because they had picked intelligence to that effect.

“This is not surprising because not quite long, some people in Accra held a press conference and poisoned the atmosphere. So we had picked the intelligence that some people were planning such a thing, so we are on high alert and we have put everything in place to ensure that even if they do, we repel them with the force at our disposal, legally…we want to send that signal out there that we are prepared to defend ourselves,” he told Joy News Friday.