Uganda, Sudan start joint military operations against LRA

Nov 12, 2005 (KAMPALA) — Ugandan Defense Minister Amama Mbabazi on Friday said Ugandan army has started joint operations with the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and Sudanese army to pursue Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels inside Sudan.

Mbabazi was quoted by Ugandan government radio as saying that Sudan has permitted Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF) to cross the Red Line and to use limited aerial power inside Sudan.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Radio Uganda, Amama Mbabazi clarified that Joseph Kony is still in Sudan saying that his efforts to cross over to the Democratic Republic of Congo were blocked by SPLA and UPDF forces.

Amama Mbabazi said Sudan had permitted UPDF to cross the red line and to use limited area of power inside Sudan.

He was satisfied with the level of cooperation between Uganda and Sudan, saying that Joseph Kony has no more territorial protection.

The minister further announced that the United Nations and the Kinshasa government had deployed troops to Aba region in DRC to surround and pursue LRA deputy commander Vincent Otti, who is hiding around Yei and Meridi.

Amama Mbabazi reaffirmed that PRA rebels exist in the Democratic Republic of Congo, saying those denying these are enemies of peace.

He criticized the former presidential candidate, Col Dr Kizza Besigye, for claiming that PRA was government ploy to arrest Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) supporters saying there is enough evidence that PRA exists. The minister also dismissed as false claims that government plans to arrest Col Kizza Besigye.

The LRA rebels have been fighting the Ugandan government for the last 19 years, killing tens of thousands of people and displacing over 1.4 million people in northern Uganda. The rebels use their bases in southern Sudan to attack Uganda.

(/ST)