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☆ Ugandan Court Upholds Draconian Anti-Gay Law
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Abdi Latif Dahir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Uganda’s Constitutional Court on Tuesday largely upheld a sweeping anti-gay law that President Yoweri Museveni signed last year, undermining the efforts of activists and rights groups to abolish legislation that drew worldwide condemnation and strained the East African nation’s relationship with the West. The legislation, which was signed into law by Mr. Museveni in May, calls for life imprisonment for anyone who engages in gay sex. But the law was popular in Uganda, a landlocked nation of over 48 million people, where religious and political leaders frequently inveigh against homosexuality. The fallout for Uganda will be watched closely in other African countries where anti-gay sentiment is on the rise and anti-gay legislation is under consideration, including Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania and South Sudan. In February, Ghana’s Parliament passed an anti-gay law, but the country’s president said that he would not sign it until the Supreme Court ruled on its constitutionality.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Museveni Organizations: East, West, World Bank Locations: Uganda’s, Uganda, United States, Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, South Sudan, Ghana’s

☆ Uganda to borrow $150 mln from China's Exim after World Bank halts funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A worker is seen near a sign of the Export-Import Bank of China at the venue for the second China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, China October 31, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsKAMPALA, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Uganda is preparing to borrow $150 million from China's Export Import Bank (Exim) to help expand its internet infrastructure, the finance ministry on Monday. A junior finance minister and the minister for information asked lawmakers on Monday to authorise the debt, the finance ministry wrote on X, the social media platform. Uganda is in negotiations with Chinese export credit agency SINOSURE and Exim Bank for a loan to finance the construction of a pipeline to help Uganda export its crude oil to international markets. The World Bank, traditionally Uganda's biggest development lender, halted loans to Uganda after President Yoweri Museveni signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act which hands out tough sentences including death for a range homosexual activities.

Persons: Stringer, SINOSURE, Yoweri Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Hereward Holland, William Maclean Organizations: Export, Import Bank of China, China, REUTERS, Rights, China's Export Import Bank, World Bank, Exim Bank, Bank, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Rights KAMPALA, Uganda

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The extension of the U.S. program allowing sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to U.S. markets is expected to be high on the agenda of the U.S. Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade forum that will begin in South Africa on Thursday. AGOA is U.S. legislation that allows sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to the U.S. market provided they meet certain conditions, including adherence to the rule of law and the protection of human rights. In May, Biden threatened to remove Uganda from AGOA and impose sanctions following the passing of a controversial anti-gay law. They also called on the forum to be held in a different country to send a message to South Africa about the impact of its close ties to Moscow. An inquiry appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa has since cleared South Africa of supplying Russia with arms.

Persons: Katherine Tai, Joy Basu, Joe Biden, ”, John Stremlau, AGOA, Ebrahim Patel, Biden, Ofwono Opondo, Yoweri Museveni, Cyril Ramaphosa, Ramaphosa, ___ Rodney Muhumuza Organizations: U.S, U.S ., African, Congress, Republicans, Central African, Republican, Democratic Locations: JOHANNESBURG, U.S, U.S . Africa, South Africa, Johannesburg, Niger, Uganda, Central African Republic, Gabon, Africa, South, AGOA, U.S . South Africa, Cuba, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Kampala

☆ Uganda: Manhunt launched as newlyweds killed on honeymoon
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni says security forces are on the trail of an ISIS-linked rebel group blamed for the killing of two foreign newlyweds celebrating their honeymoon at a popular tourist destination in the country. The couple was killed Tuesday alongside their local safari guide at the Queen Elizabeth National Park in southwestern Uganda, police said, adding that the victims’ vehicle was also set ablaze by their killers. It added that the national park was “safe and secure” for visitors despite the tragedy. Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni Abubaker Lubowa/ReutersFollowing the killing, Britain’s foreign office warned UK nationals to avoid nonessential travel to Queen Elizabeth National Park. According to Museveni, Uganda’s security forces are on the verge of “wiping out” the ADF despite attempts by the group to “commit some random terrorist acts.”

Persons: CNN —, Yoweri Museveni, Museveni, ” Museveni, Yoweri Museveni Abubaker Lubowa, Queen Elizabeth, ” Kasese, ” Organizations: CNN, Queen Elizabeth National, Uganda’s Wildlife Authority, South, ADF, Commission, Reuters, Uganda “, Sunday, United Nations Locations: Uganda, Ugandan, Kasese, Uganda’s Butambala, United States

☆ Uganda police say suspected rebels kill three in national park
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Elias Biryabarema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Stringer Acquire Licensing RightsKAMPALA, Oct 17 (Reuters) - A Ugandan national and two foreign tourists have been killed in an attack by suspected Islamist rebels from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) in a national park, the police said on Tuesday. The ADF began as an uprising in Uganda but has been based in the Democratic Republic of Congo since the late 1990s. "We have registered a cowardly terrorist attack on two foreign tourists and a Ugandan in Queen Elizabeth National Park. The national park's western boundary is the shore of Lake Edward, which separates Uganda from Congo. Last week, ADF fighters killed at least one man and injured another when it ambushed a truck in western Uganda.

Persons: Stringer, Fred Enanga, Enanga, Lake Edward, Bashir Hangi, Yoweri Museveni, Meddie Nkalubo, Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, George Obulutsa, Estelle Shirbon, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Secondary, Allied Democratic Forces, REUTERS, Rights, Ugandan, ADF, Democratic, Islamic State, Park, Uganda Wildlife Authority, Rebels, Thomson Locations: Mpondwe, Uganda, Rights KAMPALA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Queen Elizabeth, Lake, Congo, Kampala

They are mostly looking for secondhand clothing, sifting through underwear for pairs that seem new or trying on shoes despite getting pushed around in the crush. Despite the popularity, secondhand clothes are facing increasing pushback. And we get all documents for that.”The Green Shops are environmentally friendly because they recycle used clothes in bulk, he said. Not surprisingly, many people would rather buy used clothing, she said. Abdulrashid Ssuuna, who tries to persuade customers in the market to stop by his brother’s used clothing business, said a ban would deny him a livelihood.

Persons: —, “, Yoweri Museveni, ” Museveni, Uganda —, Kalungi, ”, ” Kalungi, Allan Zavuga, ” Zavuga, Abdulrashid Ssuuna, Ssuuna, Tadeo Walusimbi, ” Walusimbi Organizations: Downtown, U.S . Agency for International Development, East African Community Locations: KAMPALA, Uganda, East Africa, U.S, Africa, Burundi, Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Washington, In Uganda, China, Germany, Kampala, Ugandan

☆ World reacts to Hamas attack on Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa Acquire Licensing RightsOct 8 (Reuters) - The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas launched the biggest attack on Israel in years on Saturday. Germany condemns these attacks by Hamas and stands by Israel," Scholz said on social media. However, Morocco's Islamist PJD party, which had been the largest in parliament until elections in 2021, praised the Hamas attack as "a heroic act" and "a natural and legitimate reaction to daily violations". EUROPEAN UNIONEU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said: "I unequivocally condemn the attack carried out by Hamas terrorists against Israel. INDONESIA"Indonesia is very concerned about the increasing escalation of the conflict between Palestine and Israel," the foreign ministry the world’s largest Muslim-majority country said on X.

Persons: Mahmoud Issa, Antony Blinken, Lloyd Austin, Tor Wennesland, Volker Tuerk, MAHMOUD ABBAS, WAFA, Abbas, Ali Khamenei, Yahya Rahim Safavi, Nasser Kanaani, ISNA, OLAF SCHOLZ, Scholz, EMMANUEL MACRON Macron, Abraham, JOSEP BORRELL, Borrell, JUSTIN TRUDEAU, JAMES, Ursula von der Leyen, TAYYIP ERDOGAN, Erdogan, Israel, MIKHAIL BOGDANOV, Bogdanov, VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY Zelenskiy, Israel's, ANDRZEJ DUDA, I'm, Duda, PETR PAVEL, Pavel, Giorgia Meloni, KISHIDA, Kishida, Faki Mahamat, Yoweri Museveni, Jan Harvey, Andrew Cawthorne, Ros Russell, Barbara Lewis, Toby Chopra Organizations: REUTERS, Hamas, UNITED, State Department . U.S . Defense, of Defense, Human, Palestinian, Abraham Accords, Israel, Twitter, EU Commission, Hezbollah, Rockets, State, African Union, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Palestinian, IRAN, Palestine, Jerusalem, CHINA, State, Germany, SAUDI ARABIA, Egypt, MOROCCO Morocco, EU, Muscat, Oman, Canada, QATAR, MIKHAIL BOGDANOV Russia, Iran, Lebanese, Poland, Japan, KUWAIT Kuwait, EMIRATES, UAE, INDONESIA, Indonesia, KENYA, X, UGANDA, Uganda

CNN —Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine was arrested at Entebbe International Airport near the capital Kampala on Thursday as he returned to the country, according to his party the National Unity Platform. The National Unity Platform (NUP) said in a social media post that Wine was “violently arrested upon his return to Uganda. Opposition frontrunnerWine, a popstar-turned-politician whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, was the main opposition frontrunner in the presidential elections in January 2021 and lost to President Yoweri Museveni. Wine rejected the election results, saying he had evidence of fraud and intimidation. “The Security Agencies will take all necessary measures to ensure that individuals involved in illegal activities are arrested and brought before the courts of law.”

Persons: Bobi Wine, “, ”, Wine, Robert Kyagulanyi, Yoweri Museveni, Museveni, ’ Organizations: CNN, Wine, Uganda Police Force, Entebbe International, ” Police Locations: Entebbe, Kampala, Uganda, Magere

☆ What Uganda’s war on second-hand clothes means for fashion
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Sarah Kent | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Camille Delbos/Art In All of Us/Corbis/Getty ImagesSo Kolade turned to something that was available in abundance: second-hand clothes. “I have declared war on second-hand clothes to promote African wear,” the President said during the opening of 16 factories at an industrial park late last month, according to Ugandan newspaper Daily Monitor. Ugandan fashion house Buzigahill give new life to second-hand clothes through patchworking and splicing pieces together. According to the Uganda Dealers in Used Clothing and Shoes Association, there are a huge number of jobs directly and indirectly involved in the second-hand clothing supply chain. “It is clear that the second-hand clothing trade is broken because the firsthand clothing trade is broken,” said Ricketts.

Persons: Bobby Kolade, Camille Delbos, Kolade, patchworked sweats, Yoweri Museveni, Martin Kharumwa, ”, Corti Paul Lakuma, Bales, Andrew Caballero, Reynolds, Uganda’s, Buzigahill, Liz Ricketts, Ricketts Organizations: CNN, The, Fashion, Ugandan, Daily Monitor, East African Community, Policy Research, Greenpeace, Bloomberg, Getty, European Union, European Environment Agency, Uganda Dealers, Association, European Locations: Berlin, Kampala, Entebbe, Uganda, Turkey, China, East, Europe, East Africa, Philippines, Indonesia, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Ugandan, Accra, Ghana, Africa, Kantamanto, California

☆ Uganda leader says air strike killed fighters of IS-allied rebel group in Congo
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni attends a session of the Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, July 28, 2023. The strike was carried out in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo on Sept.16 and intelligence gathered after the strike had confirmed members of group, Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), had been killed, he said. In December 2021 Uganda launched an operation in eastern Congo against ADF but the group still carries out attacks both against civilians and military targets in Congo and Uganda. In June this year 42 people, mostly students, were massacred at a school in Kasese in western Uganda -- another attack Uganda blamed on ADF. The rebel group is widely believed to seek to establish an Islamic rule in the east African country.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Mikhail Tereshchenko, Nkalubo, Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Clelia Organizations: Agency, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Islamic, Allied Democratic Forces, ADF, Thomson Locations: Russia, Africa, Saint Petersburg, Rights KAMPALA, Islamic State, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kampala, Uganda, Congo, Kasese, Uganda's

CNN —Two men in Uganda are facing separate charges of “aggravated homosexuality,” an offense punishable by death under the country’s controversial new anti-gay laws. “Aggravated homosexuality,” according to the much-criticized act, involves incest, sex with children, as well as people with disabilities or the elderly. The act, signed into law in May, also outlaws gay marriage in Uganda and it punishes same-sex acts with life imprisonment. The man arrested in Soroti is the second person to be charged with the capital offense in Uganda since the law passed in May. Earlier this month, the World Bank said it would not consider fresh loan requests from Uganda following the anti-gay legislation.

Persons: ”, “, ” Jacqueline Okui, Yoweri Museveni, Justine Balya, Balya, Museveni, Joe Biden, ” Museveni Organizations: CNN, Public Prosecutions, US, World Bank, United Nations Locations: Uganda, Soroti, Jinja district

☆ Exclusive: First Ugandan charged with 'aggravated homosexuality' punishable by death
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KAMPALA, Aug 28 (Reuters) - A 20-year-old man has become the first Ugandan to be charged with "aggravated homosexuality", an offence punishable by death under the country's recently enacted anti-gay law, prosecutors and his lawyer said. It prescribes life in prison for same-sex intercourse. According to a charge sheet seen by Reuters, the defendant was charged on Aug. 18 with aggravated homosexuality after he "performed unlawful sexual intercourse" with a 41-year-old man. She said she was not aware of anyone else having been previously charged with aggravated homosexuality. Balya said four other people have been charged under the law since its enactment and that her client was the first to be prosecuted for aggravated homosexuality.

Persons: Jacqueline Okui, Okui, Justine Balya, Balya, Yoweri Museveni, Joe Biden, Aaron Ross, Peter Graff Organizations: Reuters, High Court, World Bank, United, Thomson Locations: KAMPALA, Uganda, Magistrate’s, United States

☆ Uganda bans imports of used clothing from 'dead people'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Like most African countries, Uganda has traditionally imported large quantities of used clothing, which some consumers prefer because it is low-cost. At least 70% of garments donated to charity in Europe and the United States end up in Africa, according to Oxfam, a British charity. The East African Community, a regional economic grouping of which Uganda is a member, agreed in 2016 to a complete ban on used clothing imports by 2019, but Rwanda was the only country to enact it. As a result, the United States in 2018 suspended Rwanda's right to export clothing duty-free to the United States, one of the benefits of the United States' tariff and quota-free African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Museveni said the ban would also extend to electricity meters and electric cables, saying they should be bought from factories in Uganda.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Abubaker, Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Oxfam, Reuters, East African Community, Thomson Locations: Kisozi, Gomba, Central Region, Uganda, Rights KAMPALA, Africa, Europe, United States, British, Sino, Mbale city, Rwanda, U.S, Kampala, Hereward Holland

☆ Uganda president defiant after World Bank funding suspended over LGBT law
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Elias Biryabarema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni attends a session of the Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, July 28, 2023. The World Bank has an existing portfolio of $5.2 billion in Uganda, although these projects will not be affected. "It is, therefore, unfortunate that the World Bank and other actors dare to want to coerce us into abandoning our faith, culture, principles and sovereignty, using money. He added he hoped the World Bank would reconsider its decision. In June, the United States imposed visa restrictions on some Ugandan officials in response to the law.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Mikhail Tereshchenko, Museveni, Joe Biden, Elias Biryabarema, George Obulutsa, Aaron Ross, Bernadette Baum Organizations: Agency, REUTERS, Bank, World Bank, Thomson Locations: Russia, Africa, Saint Petersburg, KAMPALA, Uganda, Western, United States

☆ Uganda president defiant after World Bank suspends funding over LGBT law
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Elias Biryabarema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni attends a session of the Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, July 28, 2023. The World Bank said on Tuesday that the law, which imposes the death penalty for certain same-sex acts, contradicted its values and that it would pause new funding until it could test measures to prevent discrimination in projects it finances. The World Bank has an existing portfolio of $5.2 billion in Uganda, although these projects will not be affected. "It is, therefore, unfortunate that the World Bank and other actors dare to want to coerce us into abandoning our faith, culture, principles and sovereignty, using money. He added he hoped the World Bank would reconsider its decision.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Mikhail Tereshchenko, Museveni, Henry Musasizi, Musasizi, Joe Biden, Elias Biryabarema, Hereward Holland, George Obulutsa, Aaron Ross, Bernadette Baum, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Agency, REUTERS, Bank, World Bank, Thomson Locations: Russia, Africa, Saint Petersburg, KAMPALA, Uganda, Western, United States

☆ Iran's President Raisi embarks on Africa tour to boost trade
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Reuters —Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi received a red-carpet welcome from Kenyan counterpart William Ruto on Wednesday as he began a three-country tour of Africa that Tehran has touted as a “new beginning” in relations with the continent. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (C) inspects the guard of honour during his state visit at the State House in Nairobi on July 12, 2023. Raisi is expected to next fly to Uganda to discuss trade and bilateral relations with President Yoweri Museveni, and then to Zimbabwe. In June, Raisi visited three Latin American countries to shore up support with allies also saddled with US sanctions. Iran’s trade with African countries will increase to more than $2 billion this year, its foreign ministry said on Saturday, without providing a comparative figure for 2022.

Persons: Reuters —, Ebrahim Raisi, William Ruto, Simon Maina, Ruto, Raisi, Kenya’s, Yoweri Museveni, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Shoring, Donald Trump Organizations: Reuters, Kenyan, State, Getty, Ruto Locations: Africa, Tehran, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nairobi, AFP, Iran, Kenya, Central, East

☆ Iranian President Raisi begins Africa trip with visit to Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Raisi's trip to Africa, which will also take him to Uganda and Zimbabwe, is the first by an Iranian president in more than a decade, and represents a bid to diversify economic ties in the face of crippling U.S. sanctions. Iran stepped up its diplomatic outreach to developing world countries after then-U.S. President Donald Trump ditched a nuclear pact in 2018 and reimposed sanctions. In June, Raisi visited three Latin American countries to shore up support with allies also saddled with U.S. sanctions. Raisi is expected to next fly to Uganda to discuss trade and bilateral relations with President Yoweri Museveni, and then to Zimbabwe. The last Iranian leader to visit Africa was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2013.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, William Ruto, Donald Trump, Raisi, Kenya's, Yoweri Museveni, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Bhargav Acharya, Hereward, Aaron Ross, Jason Neely Organizations: Kenyan, Ruto, Thomson Locations: NAIROBI, Africa, Tehran, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Iran, Kenya, East, Hereward Holland

These themes have become a common thread in his sermons and interviews, especially since Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act was signed into law last month. Nowhere is safe for any queer person living in Uganda,” Joan Amek, co-founder of Rella Women’s Foundation, told CNN. At least 300 human rights violations against suspected homosexuals have been reported in Uganda arising from the Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023, the SRT told CNN. ‘My life is hell’Nash Wash Raphael, a 30-year-old transgender man, says he was attacked on the night Museveni signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act. The Church of Uganda openly defied the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and supported the Anti-Homosexuality Act, accusing the global head of the Anglican Church of misinterpreting the Bible.

Persons: Canon John Awodi, ”, Yoweri Museveni, ” Joan Amek, didn’t, ’, “, ” Amek, Joan Amekis, Asuman Basalirwa, ‘, Nash, Raphael, Museveni, Nash Wash Raphael, Fabien Muhire, ” Raphael, couldn’t, We’ve, they’ll, Anglican Church Amek, Amek, of Canterbury, Justin Welby, Welby, Bill Organizations: Uganda CNN, Saints ’ Cathedral, CNN, Rella, Foundation, Bethlehem Feleke, SRT, Anglican Church, Anglican, of Locations: Kampala, Uganda, Rev, Bethlehem, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Africa, Ugandan

[1/5] Participants react with Pride rainbow flags as they attend the Badilika festival to celebrate the LGBT rights in Nairobi, Kenya, June 11, 2023. Some regional lawmakers frame the issue as an almost existential battle to save African values and sovereignty, which they say have been battered by Western pressure to capitulate on gay rights. Spokespeople for the Kenyan presidency and government didn't respond to requests for comment about the proposed bill. Several called for legislation to strengthen penalties for same-sex acts, including the deputy majority leader, who said gay sex could be punished by hanging. President William Ruto, an evangelical Christian, has criticized a February supreme court decision allowing an LGBT rights group to register as a non-governmental organization.

Persons: Mohamed Ali doesn't, Ali, Weeks, Bill, Yoweri Museveni, Annette Atieno, John Agany, Jacqueline Ngonyani, Ngonyani, Damas Ndumbaro, William Ruto, Peter Kaluma, Uganda's, Kaluma, U.S . State Department didn't, Stella Kachina, Marylize Biubwa, Lorna Dias, Dias, Nuzulack Dausen, Waakhe Simon Wudu, Daphne Psaledakis, Estelle Shirbon, Aaron Ross, Pravin Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Kenyan, National Gay, Human Rights Commission, U.S . State Department, East, NAIROBI PRIDE, Gay and Lesbian Coalition of, Thomson Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, NAIROBI, East Africa, Juba, United, Africa, Entebbe, Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya, Ruto, Dar es, Washington

☆ Uganda: Twenty people arrested on suspicion of collaborating in Uganda school massacre
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Twenty people accused of helping an ISIS-linked rebel group suspected of killing dozens, mostly students at a school in western Uganda, have been arrested, Ugandan police told CNN. A spokesperson for the Uganda Police Force, Fred Enanga, told CNN on Monday that 20 suspected ADF collaborators had been arrested, but no actual members of the militia group. The arrests follow authorities’ earlier disclosure that the ADF may have spent days planning the attack with the help of local residents in town. The Lhubirira school is located in the town of Kasese, which sits along the country’s border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, with students aged between 13 and 18. The ISIS-linked ADF was designated as a terrorist organization by the United States in 2021 and was sanctioned by the United Nations in 2014.

Persons: Fred Enanga, Yoweri Museveni, ” Museveni Organizations: CNN, Allied Democratic Forces, Lhubirira Secondary, Uganda Police Force, ADF, Democratic, UBC Television, United Nations Locations: Uganda, Mpondwe, Kasese, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda’s, Congo, Congo Government, North Kivu, United States

☆ Uganda detains 20 rebel 'collaborators' after student massacre
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Stringer/File PhotoKAMPALA, June 19 (Reuters) - Ugandan authorities said on Monday 20 people had been detained for questioning about their possible role in the massacre of 42 people, mostly students, on Friday by the Islamist group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). "At least 20 suspected ADF collaborators have been arrested, to assist with our investigations," the country's police force said in a statement. The student victims included a 12-year-old girl in her first year of secondary school education, according to police. "All the 17 burnt bodies were male and the burns were distributed all over the bodies, both front and back. ADF fighters have occasionally carried out attacks inside Uganda, including bombings in Kampala in 2021.

Persons: Stringer, Yoweri Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Christina Fincher Organizations: Secondary, Allied Democratic Forces, REUTERS, Islamic, Democratic, ADF, Thomson Locations: Mpondwe, Uganda, KAMPALA, Islamic State, Uganda's, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Kampala

☆ Uganda sends more troops to pursue attackers who killed 37 students
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Elias Biryabarema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/StringerKAMPALA, June 18 (Reuters) - Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni on Sunday ordered more troops to western Uganda where attackers from a group with links to Islamic State killed at least 37 secondary school students. Members of the rebel Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) killed the students late on Friday at Lhubirira Secondary School in Mpondwe, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Military and police said the attackers had also abducted six students and fled towards the Virunga National Park across the border. New Vision said 39 of the dead were students, and some were killed when the attackers set off a bomb as they fled. In April, the ADF attacked a village in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing at least 20 people.

Persons: Stringer, Yoweri Museveni, Museveni, Ugandans, Janet Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, George Obulutsa, Giles Elgood Organizations: Secondary, Allied Democratic Forces, REUTERS, Sunday, Islamic, Lhubirira Secondary, Democratic, Military, ADF, Museveni, NTV Uganda, Vision, New Vision, United Nations, African Union, East, Authority, Development, Education, Thomson Locations: Mpondwe, Uganda, Stringer KAMPALA, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwenzori, Congo, East African's

☆ Militants kill 37, abduct six others in attack on Ugandan school
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Elias Biryabarema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Military personnel found the bodies of the dead when they arrived at the school, defence spokesperson Felix Kulayigye said in a statement. The attackers, from the rebel group Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), fled towards Virunga National Park in Congo, police said. Police said eight other people were in hospital with critical injuries after the attack at the Lhubirira Secondary School in Mpondwe. He said an unidentified youth had gone to the school to check its layout before the attack. In April, the ADF attacked a village in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing at least 20 people.

Persons: Felix Kulayigye, Dick Olum, Olum, Yoweri Museveni, Elias Biryabarema, Jose Joseph, George Obulutsa, Fiston Mahamba, William Mallard, Frances Kerry Organizations: Islamic State Military, Islamic State, Democratic, Military, Twitter, Allied Democratic Forces, Police, Secondary, Privately, NTV Uganda, Vision, New Vision, Mpondwe, Daily Monitor, ADF, Thomson Locations: KAMPALA, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Mpondwe, Bengaluru, Nairobi, Fiston, Goma

☆ At least 41 killed in rebel attack on Ugandan school near Congo border
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

At least six people were abducted by the rebels, who fled across the porous border into Congo after the raid on Friday night, according to the Ugandan military. The school, co-ed and privately owned, is located in the Ugandan district of Kasese, about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the Congo border. The ADF has been accused of launching many attacks in recent years targeting civilians in remote parts of eastern Congo. In March , at least 19 people were killed in Congo by suspected ADF extremists. Ugandan authorities for years have vowed to track down ADF militants even outside Ugandan territory.

Persons: Selevest Mapoze, Mapoze, Felix Kulayigye, Joe Walusimbi, Winnie Kiiza, Yoweri Museveni Organizations: Uganda People's Defence Force, Secondary School, Islamic, AFP, Getty Images, Authorities, Lhubiriha Secondary School, Allied Democratic Forces, Associated Press, AP, Twitter, ADF Locations: Uganda, Mpondwe, Congo, Islamic State, Ugandan, Kasese, U.S

[1/3] Ugandan students hold placards as they participate in a peaceful walk to appreciate President Yoweri Museveni for signing the new anti-homosexuality law in Kampala, Uganda May 31, 2023. REUTERS/Abubaker Lubowa/File PhotoWASHINGTON, June 16 (Reuters) - The United States has imposed visa restrictions on Uganda officials after the African nation passed an anti-LGBTQ law that was condemned by many countries and the United Nations, the U.S. State Department said on Friday. U.S. President Joe Biden had threatened aid cuts and other sanctions, while Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last month the government would consider visa restrictions against Ugandan officials. "The United States strongly supports the Ugandan people and remains committed to advancing respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in Uganda and globally," the State Department said. The law also imposes a life sentence for same-sex intercourse and a 20-year sentence for promotion of homosexuality.

Persons: Yoweri Museveni, Abubaker, Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, Kanishka Singh, Susan Heavey, Bill Berkrot Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, United, United Nations, U.S . State Department, The, Department, State Department, Thomson Locations: Kampala, Uganda, United States, U.S, Washington

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