Govts of Uganda, Sudan and DR Congo today launch joint offensive against Uganda LRA rebels in DRC, Uganda says

Today, the governments of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan launched a joint military offensive against the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) bases in Garamba, eastern Congo, an army spokesman said.

Let's hope this news is of a genuine effort to eradicate the LRA who have been on the rampage for more than 20 years, committing unspeakable crimes and atrocities that are far worse than anything that has happened in Darfur, W. Sudan.

Further details are here below in a report just in from the BBC and in a Factbox from Reuters giving some details about leader Joseph Kony and his LRA rebels, along with a profile by the Telegraph's David Blair and a recent photo of Kony who is estimated to have abducted more than 20,000 children to fight as footsoldiers in the LRA.

Also, here below is a blog post and extract from an article on the LRA by freelance journalist Rob Crilly. The whole 2000 word article is up for sale. Rob does not mention a price but in the comments at his post at From The Frontline blog he says that he is open to offers. If anyone reading this is able to sponsor Rob's article for publication here at Congo Watch (and its sister sites Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch) please email me. I have spent over four years raising awareness of the LRA and would appreciate Rob's article being published asap in the hope of it being helpful to the poor forgotten people of Northern Uganda. No doubt Rob's article is very good. It needs to be shared as widely as possible. Here are just a few of the reasons why, in pictures:

See Sudan Watch, February 06, 2006: One of the world's most wanted men: Ugandan LRA terrorist group chief Joseph Kony flees Southern Sudan into DR Congo - UN calls NGOs into Kony hunt



Photo: Gulu victim. The LRA use torture to instil fear. Uganda's rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) has become synonymous with torture, abductions and killings. (BBC photo) from Sudan Watch archives.



Photo: Two young boy's get treated for severe burn wounds in the Lira hospital in northern Uganda, Feb 23, 2004, after a massacre believed to be committed by the Lord's Resistance Army rebel group in the Barlonyo camp 26 kilometers north of the town that killed at least 200 people. (AP Photo/Karel Prinsloo) from Sudan Watch archives.



Photo: Ochola John was deformed by rebels from Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (BBC) Read the victim's heartbreaking testimony: June 30 2006 Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch - LRA victim: 'I cannot forget and forgive'

ARMIES 'ATTACK UGANDA REBELS'
From the BBC Sunday, 14 December 2008 7:36 PM GMT:

Three African armies have launched a joint offensive against Ugandan rebels based in eastern DR Congo, military officials say in Uganda.

Uganda, DR Congo and the government of South Sudan reportedly moved against the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in the Garamba region of DR Congo.

LRA leader Joseph Kony, wanted by the International Criminal Court, has recently stalled on a peace deal.

The LRA has led a rebellion for more than 20 years in northern Uganda.

The fighting has displaced some two million people.

Uganda's government has been involved in lengthy peace negotiations with the LRA, but the rebels' leader has demanded that arrest warrants for him and his associates are dropped before any agreement can be struck.

A statement announcing the operation was released in the Ugandan capiital Kampala by the intelligence chiefs of all three armed forces.

The statement said the attack targeted the "terrorists" at their bases in the forested area of Garamba, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, AFP news agency said.

"The three armed forces successfully attacked the main body and destroyed the main camp of Kony, code-named camp Swahili, setting it on fire," the statement said.

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FOR SALE: LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY FEATURE
December 10, 2008 blog post by Rob Crilly:

Earlier this year photographer Kate Holt and I chartered a plane to fly from Dungu, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, to the tiny village of Doruma which was recovering from repeated attacks by the Lord’s Resistance Army. We found people living in fear of the next assault, as LRA raiding parties roamed the jungle looking for sex slaves, porters and fighters.

We uncovered evidence that Joseph Kony was cynically using a halt in hostilities - called to allow peace talks - in order to rearm, recruit and reorganise. With food distributed by aid agencies and satphones delivered by the Ugandan diaspora, his fighting force was more efficient that ever. And one his key aides, a recent defector, told us that Kony would never sign up to peace.

FOR eight days Raymond Kpiolebeyo was marched at gunpoint through the steaming Congolese jungle, not knowing whether he would live or die. For six nights he slept with eight other prisoners pinned under a plastic sheet weighted down with bags and stones to prevent escape. Their sweat condensed on the sheeting inches above their faces before dripping back and turning their plastic prison into a stinking, choking sauna.

He was a prisoner of the Lord’s Resistance Army, a cult-like band of brutal commanders and their brutalised child soldiers.

“They told us that if one of use tried to escape we would all be shot,” said Raymond, a 28-year-old teacher from the town of Doruma, close to the border with South Sudan.

In the end the story was commissioned but never ran. So, I am offering a 2000wd feature, an unparalleled insight into the bizarre world of Joseph Kony, for sale. Please contact me by the using the comments section below…



Photo: Two young children stand outside their hut in the moonlight in Dungu, in North Eastern DR Congo, on 19 June, 2008. (Photo by Kate Holt kateholt.com)

Note, although Rob does not mention a price, in the comments at his blog post, he says he is open to offers. I would be most grateful for any ideas or suggestions that would help the article get published. If anyone reading this is able to sponsor the article (or knows someone who can) for publication here at Congo Watch, Uganda Watch and Sudan Watch, please email me. The plight of the poor people of Northern Uganda and LRA victims must not be forgotten. Please help in any way possible. Thank you.
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WHO ARE UGANDA'S LRA REBELS?
December 14, 2008 factbox from Reuters:

WHAT HAS HAPPENED:

Thousands of people have been killed and 2 million displaced during the 22 years of fighting between Kony's rebels and the Ugandan government. The conflict has destabilised parts of oil-producing south Sudan and mineral-rich eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Last October LRA fighters carried out a series of raids near Congo's porous northern border with Sudan, looting homes and burning buildings in a pattern similar to months of violence. LRA fighters killed at least 52 people, and abducted another 159 children and 10 adults during attacks in northern Congo in September, that country's U.N. peacekeeping mission, MONUC, said.

A landmark truce was signed in August 2006 and was later renewed. But talks brokered by south Sudan collapsed last April after Kony failed to sign the pact as planned.

Mediators gave Kony until the end of November to give his final approval to the peace deal. However, he again failed to appear to sign a final peace deal and told traditional elders at the end of last month he would still not sign a final peace deal until an international arrest warrant for him is scrapped.

Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague for his role in a conflict that has destabilised a swathe of central Africa.

THE LRA AND A HUMANITARIAN CRISIS:

Self-proclaimed mystic Kony began one of a series of initially popular uprisings in northern Uganda after President Yoweri Museveni seized power in 1986. But his tactics of kidnapping recruits and killing civilians alienated supporters.

The LRA was infamous for abducting children for use as soldiers, porters and "wives". Although there are no universally accepted figures, the children are believed to number many thousands. Some are freed after days, others never escape.

Kony's force was once backed by Khartoum as a proxy militia, although Sudan said it cut all ties with it. Kony quit his hideouts in south Sudan in 2005 for the Democratic Republic of Congo's remote Garamba forest.

Many northerners reviled the LRA for its atrocities, but also blamed Museveni for setting up camps for at least 2 million people as part of his counter-insurgency strategy, fuelling one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

WHAT DOES KONY WANT?

Kony has said he wants to rule Uganda by the Biblical Ten Commandments, but at peace talks his group also articulated a range of northern grievances, including the theft of cattle by Museveni's troops and demands for more political power.

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PROFILE: Joseph Kony, leader of the Lord's Resistance Army

By David Blair
The Daily Telegraph
November 29, 2008

When Joseph Kony's minions began peace talks with Uganda's government in 2005, their first task was to think of some coherent aims on behalf of their psychotic leader.



Photo: Joseph Kony is estimated to have abducted more than 20,000 children to fight as footsoldiers in the Lord's Resistance Army (Reuters photo)

Kony, who is about 47 and holds the distinction of being the first man ever to be indicted by the International Criminal Court, has waged war with no purpose since 1988.

He began his campaign in Northern Uganda, posing as a messianic figure who communed with holy spirits. The nearest Kony ever came to a political goal was a pledge to rule Uganda according to the Ten Commandments.

At the beginning, he won some followers largely because President Yoweri Museveni had ignored Northern Uganda and excluded Kony's Acholi people from power.

By 1992, Kony had staked his claim to be fighting in the name of the Lord by naming his movement the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). But his rebellion amounted to a vicious cult, not a classic insurgency, and had no purpose save rebellion itself.

Consequently, no-one would volunteer to fight for Kony's non-existent cause, leaving him with little choice but to abduct children and force them to become his footsoldiers. How many innocents have suffered this fate is unknown – but the official estimate of 20,000 is almost a decade out of date. The real total may be two or three times higher.

The peace talks with Uganda's government have yielded a draft agreement, which Kony's representatives insist he will sign.

But a paper deal may not abate his murderous campaign.

Kony has been driven from Uganda, where no LRA attacks have occurred for almost three years. Instead, Congo's defenceless people are now his chosen victims.

Even if Kony makes peace with Uganda, his onslaught in Congo may continue.

Africa's children will only be safe when this mystical psychopath meets his well-deserved end.

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MAP OF SUDAN SHOWING JANUARY 1, 1956 LINE OF DEMARCATION

This is an interesting map. Click here for a larger view.



Source: US Government
U.S. Policy Toward Sudan
Robert B. Zoellick, Deputy Secretary of State
Testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Washington, DC
September 28, 2005

[Cross posted today at Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch]

UPDATE SUNDAY 14 DECEMBER 2008

December 14, 2008 Voice of America News report - excerpt:

A joint statement, signed by the three governments' chiefs of military intelligence, say the forces destroyed the main camp of LRA leader Joseph Kony and set it on fire. There was no immediate word on Kony's fate but the statement said the operation was still in progress.

Full story: AFRICAN NEIGHBORS ATTACK UGANDAN REBELS.

SNAPSHOT - GOOGLE'S NEWSREEL SUNDAY EVENING GMT 14 DECEMBER 2008

Regional forces launch offensive against Uganda's rebel group
Xinhua, China - 28 minutes ago
KAMPALA, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- Military forces from Uganda, southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) launched an attack on Sunday morning on ...

UPDF attacks Kony
Daily Monitor, Uganda - 1 hour ago
The UPDF yesterday attacked the Lord’s Resistance Army rebels, ending a 29-month ceasefire and signalling the complete failure of peace talks meant to end ...

UPDF planes attack Kony's Congo base
New Vision, Uganda - 1 hour ago
By Henry Mukasa UGANDA, South Sudan and DR Congo yesterday morning jointly attacked Joseph Kony’s rebels hiding in Garamaba forest. ...

Congo war hurts cross-border trade
New Vision, Uganda - 1 hour ago
By Samuel Balagadde THE political turmoil in DR Congo is frustrating cross-boarder trade between the with Uganda, a top businessman complained over the ...

Ministers want sanctions on LRA leader
New Vision, Uganda - 1 hour ago
By George Kalisa THE Foreign ministers of the member states of the Tripartite Plus Joint Commission have called on the UN Security council to impose travel ...

LRA base 'attacked' in Uganda
Aljazeera.net, Qatar - 3 hours ago
Troops from Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Sudan have attacked the bases of Uganda's Lord's
Resistance Army (LRA) in eastern Congo, ...

Joint operation against Ugandan rebels begins
Radio Netherlands, Netherlands - 3 hours ago
Military forces from Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Sudan have begun a joint operation against Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), ...

Ugandan rebels face joint offensive in DRCongo
ABC Online, Australia - 3 hours ago
By Africa correspondent Andrew Geoghegan Three central African countries have launched a joint offensive against Ugandan rebels in the Democratic Republic ...

African neighbours in joint raid on Ugandan rebels
AFP - 4 hours ago
KAMPALA (AFP) — Forces from Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Sudan launched a joint military operation Sunday against Uganda's rebel ...

Governments launch military offensive on Uganda rebels
Reuters UK, UK - 4 hours ago
By Jack Kimball KAMPALA, Dec 14 (Reuters) - Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and south Sudan launched a joint military offensive on Sunday against ...

Armies 'attack Uganda rebels'
BBC News, UK - 5 hours ago
Three African armies have launched a joint offensive against Ugandan rebels based in eastern DR Congo, military officials say in Uganda. ...

FACTBOX-Who are Uganda's LRA rebels?
Reuters AlertNet, UK - 5 hours ago
Dec 14 (Reuters) - The governments of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan on Sunday launched a joint military offensive against the ...

African Neighbors Attack Ugandan Rebels
Voice of America - 1 hour ago
By VOA News Three central African governments say their armies have launched a joint offensive against Uganda's rebel Lord's Resistance Army. ...

Nations launch offensive against Uganda LRA rebels
Reuters South Africa, South Africa - 2 hours ago
By Jack Kimball KAMPALA (Reuters) - Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and southern Sudan launched a joint military offensive on Sunday against Ugandan ...

African Armies Conduct Joint Offensive Against Ugandan
TransWorldNews (press release), GA - 2 hours ago
Armies from Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan have reportedly engaged in a joint offensive against Ugandan rebels based in the eastern DR ...

DR Congo: CNDP Nkunda's demands include renegotiation of a $9 billion infrastructure & mining investment deal struck by the gov't with China

Rwanda and Congo, which have long accused each other of backing rebel groups in east Congo hostile to their governments, agreed on Friday [Dec. 05] to joint operations against the FDLR.

But action on the ground seems a long way off as analysts say Congo's army is in no state to carry out effective anti-guerrilla operations. Rwanda has agreed to help with planning and intelligence but not to send its own soldiers.

Kenya was to host peace talks on Monday [Dec. 08] between Democratic Republic of Congo's government and eastern rebels led by dissident Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda.

Neither Kabila nor Nkunda will take part in the Nairobi talks.

Nkunda's economic demands include better governance and renegotiation of a $9 billion infrastructure and mining investment deal struck by the government with China.

Nkunda also says he and his rebels should be integrated into the national army. [Note: recently the same request was made of the Ugandan government by LRA leader Joseph Kony. See Congo Watch's sister site Uganda Watch.]

Source: December 08, 2008 Reuters report:

Q+A - Can Nairobi talks deliver peace to east Congo?

Kenya was to host peace talks on Monday [Dec. 08] between Democratic Republic of Congo's government and eastern rebels led by dissident Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda.

The talks follow weeks of fighting in Congo's North Kivu province which has displaced more than a quarter of a million civilians and during which the rebels have extended the area under their control, routing the government army.

The negotiations were meant to be the first direct talks between the two sides. However, over the weekend, Congo's government said it was expanding the talks to include another 20 armed groups operating in North Kivu. This has angered the rebels, who want only to negotiate directly with President Joseph Kabila's government.

This latest development will add confusion to the already daunting task of trying to end a chaotic conflict that has its roots in Rwanda's 1994 genocide but has also been fuelled by years of poor governance and illegal mineral exploitation.

The following are some questions and answers about the meeting and whether it can help resolve the east Congo conflict.

WHO IS IN NAIROBI?

Neither Kabila nor Nkunda will take part in the talks. Nkunda's National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) rebel delegation is led by Jean-Michel Kambasu Ngeve, Nkunda's No. 2, and includes legal and military assistants who have been involved in previous talks.

The government team is being led by Julien Paluku, governor of North Kivu, and Raymond Tshibanda, Minister for Regional Cooperation and formerly head of Kabila's cabinet.

Also present will be Apollinaire Malu Malu, who oversaw a January 2008 peace process for east Congo that included Nkunda's CNDP and more than 20 other rebel and militia groups. Nkunda has since repudiated this deal as favouring the government.

The other groups who have been invited include various pro-government militia broadly known as Mai Mai and Rwandan Hutu rebels who are based in Congo's east. Some of these Hutu rebels, now known as the FDLR, took part in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda of 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus and have since been used as allies by Congo's weak government army during a decade of war.

WHY ARE ALL THE GROUPS BEING INVITED?

The rebels have rejected a return to the January peace process -- known as Amani, Swahili for "Peace" -- as they say it has failed and insist on face-to-face talks with the government.

The government's decision to invite other groups reflects the myriad of fighters on the ground in North Kivu, where confused clashes have continued despite a ceasefire declared by Nkunda in late October.

Both the government and the rebels have said that the first aim of the Nairobi talks should be formalising a broad ceasefire, which includes the government's allied factions.

But this is also likely to complicate matters as the various armed groups have confusing and often changing agendas. The move to include many groups is rejected by Nkunda's rebels, who may feel the government is trying to undermine their military dominance by diluting the focus of the talks.

WHAT DO NKUNDA'S REBELS WANT?

When he launched his rebellion four years ago, Nkunda said he was fighting to protect fellow Tutsis from attacks by the FDLR Hutu rebels. Questions of minority representation in the government and the disarmament of the FDLR remain key.

But Nkunda has broadened his agenda and has spoken of seeking "national liberation" and of "marching on Kinshasa". He is unlikely to cross 1,500 km (900 miles) of mostly bush and take the capital but he is playing on popular frustrations with Kabila's rule in the vast, mineral-rich former Belgian colony.

Consequently, his economic demands include better governance and renegotiation of a $9 billion infrastructure and mining investment deal struck by the government with China.

Nkunda also says he and his rebels should be integrated into the national army.

WHAT IS THE LIKELIHOOD OF PROGRESS AT THE TALKS?

After numerous previous peace processes, many are sceptical about the chances for success.

But diplomats say it is better for the sides to be talking rather than fighting. Numerous war crimes have been reported and over 250,000 people have fled their homes since late August in what the United Nations calls a "humanitarian catastrophe".

In persuading the government to reluctantly talk to the rebels, Olusegun Obasanjo, a former Nigerian president who is now the U.N.'s envoy for the region, has achieved an advance.

But the invitation to the other 20 armed groups could leave the Nairobi meetings bogged down in rows and procedure.

There is also the thorny question of the FDLR Hutu rebels, which have been at the heart of two Great Lakes region wars.

Rwanda and Congo, which have long accused each other of backing rebel groups in east Congo hostile to their governments, agreed on Friday to joint operations against the FDLR.

But action on the ground seems a long way off as analysts say Congo's army is in no state to carry out effective anti-guerrilla operations. Rwanda has agreed to help with planning and intelligence but not to send its own soldiers.

(Writing by David Lewis; Editing by Pascal Fletcher) (Dakar Newsroom +221 33 864 5076)

(For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/)

EU split on UN call for Congo bridging mission - France, UK, Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force

The European Union (EU) Foreign Ministers postponed the sending of a temporary military mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The EU remained divided Monday Dec. 08 over whether to dispatch peacekeepers to the Democratic Republic of Congo despite a UN request.

France, the UK and Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force.

Belgium, former colonizer in Congo, was the only country in favour of the request, which also received support from Spain, Ireland, Czech Republic, Holland and Luxembourg, after a deeper study on the situation.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said before the discussions there was an urgent need for bridging mission of 2,500-3,000 troops.

"It will take four to six months before the additional troops for MONUC will arrive and the humanitarian situation is dramatic over there," De Gucht told reporters.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband told reporters beefing up the U.N. peacekeeping force was the priority.

"Our position has always been that there is a ... a U.N. commitment to increase the size of the MONUC force, so the first port of call is for countries to see whether they can add, either at a planning or operational level to that MONUC force," said Miliband.

Monday's gathering was largely designed to prepare the groundwork for this week's EU summit of heads of state.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said ministers would discuss Mr Ban's appeal, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

The Brussels meeting came as the first direct talks between representatives of the Congolese government and CNDP rebels were held in Kenya.

Sources: The following news reports:

BELGIUM ASKS FOR TROOPS FOR CONGO

December 08, 2008 report from The Scotsman:

BELGIUM will appeal to the European Union to send peacekeepers to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, its former colony.

Karel De Gucht, Belgium's foreign minister, was due at EU talks today. France, the UK and Germany have ruled out an EU intervention force.

- - -

EU SIDESTEPS URGENT APPEAL FOR CONGO FORCE

December 08, 2008 report from the Financial Times by Helen Warrell in Brussels and Harvey Morris at the United Nations:

The European Union sidestepped an appeal by the United Nations on Monday to dispatch troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in the east of the country where war has displaced a quarter of a million civilians.

Although a statement by EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels said a formal response to the request from Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, would be forthcoming in due course, it was clear that differences among member states made the deployment unlikely.

The statement came four days after Mr Ban wrote to the EU saying a European-led force was urgently required to ensure humanitarian aid supplies reached those who had fled fighting between government and rebel forces in Congo’s North Kivu province.

The EU deployment would fill the security gap until the UN’s own peace force, Monuc, was reinforced, a process Mr Ban said could take another four months.

Belgium, Sweden, Finland, Ireland and the Netherlands have expressed support for dispatching troops, but the deployment was strenuously opposed by the UK and Germany. Bernard Kouchner, French foreign minister, expressed frustration that no firm decision had been made.

As EU ministers met in Brussels, rebel and government representatives gathered in Nairobi, Kenya for their first face-to-face talks since fighting erupted in August. Government forces have almost disintegrated in the face of an offensive by Tutsi rebels led by the renegade general Laurent Nkunda, leaving Monuc as the only organised force in the region.

Neither Mr Nkunda nor Joseph Kabila, the Congolese president who has also appealed for European peacekeepers, were present for the Nairobi talks.

Mr Ban did not specify the size of the requested European contingent but UN officials were understood to have in mind a mobile force of about 1,000 to 1,500. One of its specific tasks would be to protect the airport and government installations in Goma, where the Monuc force is based, and other centres of population in the province.

The UN Security Council approved last month an extra 3,000 troops to reinforce the 17,000-strong Monuc, already the UN’s largest peacekeeping deployment.

Alain Le Roy, the UN’s head of peacekeeping, wrote in an article at the weekend: “Civilians have suffered from intense and often chaotic fighting, driven from their homes.”

- - -

EUROPE POSTPONES TROOPS TO DEMOCRATIC CONGO

December 08, 2008 report from Prensa Latina, Brussels:

The European Union Foreign Ministers postponed the sending of a temporary military mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo despite the formal request of the United Nations.

By now, the representatives of the 27 member countries of the EU did not join criteria, and just limited themselves to reassert the support of the United Nations Organization Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC, in French).

Javier Solanas, EU High Representative for International Relations and Common Security, said UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon sent a letter to him, in which Ki Moon asked him to think about sending troops to Democratic Congo for six months.

In that time, MONUC would increase the number of soldiers from 17,000 to 20,000.

Belgium, former colonizer in Congo, was the only country in favour of the request, which also received support from Spain, Ireland, Czech Republic, Holland and Luxembourg, after a deeper study on the situation.

Other countries such as Germany expressed their disagreement and did not take a definite position on the matter.

All the EU members will wait for the decision of the European Commission on a possible direct operation in the Congolese region of North Kivu.

The purpose of MONUC is to pacify the east of Democratic Congo, where the rebel movement led by Tutsi general Laurent Nkunda is facing governmental forces. (ef tac por)

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EU SPLIT ON CONGO TROOP MISSION

December 09, 2008 report from FOCUS News Agency, Brussels:

European foreign ministers are divided over calls to send troops to the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo, the BBC revealed.

Belgium urged the deployment of a "bridging" force but other members of the bloc were lukewarm on the idea.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on the EU on Friday to send in troops until UN reinforcements arrive.

The Brussels meeting came as the first direct talks between representatives of the Congolese government and CNDP rebels were held in Kenya.

Opening Monday's discussions in Nairobi, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said the crisis in eastern Congo was "a scar on Africa". And Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula said before the talks got underway: "Please don't let Africa down. Don't let your country down. Let this be the beginning of the end."

But the BBC says expectations for the talks are low and wider negotiations involving many of the other armed groups in the region will be needed.

About 20 armed groups were asked to join the meeting, but only representatives of Gen Laurent Nkunda's CNDP faction turned up and the two delegations met behind closed doors.

Until now the government in Kinshasa has treated the CNDP - which stands for National Congress for the Defence of the People - as just another armed rebel group.

Neither DR Congo President Joseph Kabila nor Gen Nkunda is present at the meeting. But the fact it is taking place at all is a tacit acknowledgement of the CNDP's military dominance in the region, says our correspondent.

The fighting in eastern Congo has displaced some 250,000 people since August, and the rebels have the North Kivu province capital of Goma surrounded.

At Monday's meeting in Brussels, EU foreign ministers took no decision and asked the European Commission to prepare a response to the UN secretary general.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said ministers would discuss Mr Ban's appeal, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

But non-governmental organisations poured scorn on any suggestion things in eastern DR Congo were improving, saying rape, murder and pillage was still rife in the region.

- - -

EU MULLS TROOP PRESENCE IN DR CONGO

December 08, 2008 report by DPA news agency (dfm):

Despites appeals from the United Nations for peacekeeping troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the European Union is hesitant to commit. Germany, in particular, prefers a diplomatic solution.

EU foreign ministers were meeting in Brussels on Monday, Dec. 8, to discuss the UN request to send peacekeeping troops to DR Congo.

France, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, had ruled out the deployment of European forces.

But pressure on ministers to act has increased following an appeal from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, who said Europe should help reinforce UN peacekeepers in the former Belgian colony until more UN troops can be deployed.

"It is urgent that we take a decision on such a bridging force (to DR Congo), which to my mind is absolutely necessary," said Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht.

De Gucht had said earlier December that an EU peacekeeping force for DR Congo would be unlikely as no one country was prepared to lead such a mission.

EU troops ready

Some 250,000 civilians have been displaced in the east of the DR Congo since the summer as a result of renewed clashes between government forces and Tutsi rebels led by renegade general Laurent Nkunda.

De Gucht said an EU mission would need up to 3,000 heavily-armed soldiers, which would fill in immediate shortages.

Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb said the EU should consider deploying its battle groups.

The EU has two such corps, each consisting of about 1,500 soldiers, on standby. These troops are deployable at short notice anywhere in the world but have remained unused to date.

"If we don't send them to Congo, where do we send them?" Stubb asked.

Germany urges diplomacy

However, EU heavyweight Germany is among those pushing for a diplomatic solution to the DR Congo crisis.

Ministers were greeted by a few dozen protesters who were calling for action on the DR Congo question, but diplomats said they did not expect any major decision to be taken on the issue at the meeting.

Monday's gathering was largely designed to prepare the groundwork for this week's EU summit of heads of state.

The situation in Zimbabwe and relations with Pakistan were also to be discussed.

Ministers were also expected to take a look at the EU's EULEX mission in Kosovo and its naval mission off the coast of Somalia. Both missions formally begin this week.

- - -

EU SPLIT ON UN CALL FOR CONGO BRIDGING MISSION

December 08, 2008 report from Reuters by Ingrid Melander and David Brunnstrom, Brussels:

European Union ministers were split on Monday over the U.N.'s call for an EU force to boost peacekeepers in Congo, with Belgium urging the bloc send a bridging mission and Britain wanting it to bolster U.N. troops.

Last Friday, United Nation's Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon repeated a call for a EU "bridging force", saying it may take up to six months for the U.N. to deploy 3,000 more peacekeepers to Congo to boost its 17,000-strong force, known as MONUC.

The foreign ministers took no decision at a meeting in Brussels on Monday and tasked EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and the European Commission to prepare a response to Ban's letter, an EU official said.

The idea of an EU mission has been in the air for a few weeks but the bloc has so far been reluctant to commit troops, and prospects appeared to dim after Belgium said last week there was little appetite for such a mission.

Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht said before the discussions there was an urgent need for bridging mission of 2,500-3,000 troops.

"It will take four to six months before the additional troops for MONUC will arrive and the humanitarian situation is dramatic over there," De Gucht told reporters.

Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband told reporters beefing up the U.N. peacekeeping force was the priority.

"Our position has always been that there is a ... a U.N. commitment to increase the size of the MONUC force, so the first port of call is for countries to see whether they can add, either at a planning or operational level to that MONUC force," said Miliband.

Some 250,000 people have been displaced by the violence in Congo, in which forces of renegade Congolese Tutsi Gen. Laurent Nkunda has been battling pro-government militias.

Two EU "battle groups" are on standby for missions at any given time. One of those on standby until the year-end is British, while the other is led by Germany with contributions from France, Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg.

"EUROPE SHOULD BE EFFECTVE"

From January 1, Italy will head one standby battle group with forces from Spain, Portugal and Greece, and Greece the other, with troops from Bulgaria, Cyprus and Romania.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said it was premature to say if his country would be ready to send troops in a battle group but added that some countries would call for such a deployment and he was willing to discuss it.

"One point is very clear, Europe should be effective. We cannot stay as inactive as we are now," he told reporters.

The EU's Solana said ministers would discuss Ban's call, but added: "Let me also underline that the situation on the ground is getting slightly better, and politically also."

The U.N. says fighting in Congo has triggered a humanitarian catastrophe and aid groups have criticised the EU's failure to respond with troops.

"We have had a month of every possible excuse as to why Europe will not send forces to bolster U.N. peacekeepers," said Elise Ford, Head of Office at Oxfam International in Brussels.

"Without an adequate professional force supporting U.N. peacekeepers to provide a measure of security for the population, the killing, raping and looting will continue unabated. We cannot stand by and watch."

Congo's 1998-2003 war sucked in six neighbouring armies and caused more than 5 million deaths. EU soldiers intervened in the country in 2003 to halt militia violence that grew out of the broader war and to protect 2006 elections that returned President Joseph Kabila to office.

- - -

Is UPDF about to attack Kony’s Congo camps?

IS UPDF ABOUT TO ATTACK KONY'S CONGO CAMPS?
December 07, 2008 article from the Monitor by Tabu Butagira and Risdel Kasasira in Kampala, Uganda:

Last week’s refusal by Lords Resistance Army rebel leader, Joseph Kony to sign a peace deal with Uganda government could give him safer days in the bush, but the trick could soon backfire to trouble, if not a pre-emptive strike against the insurgents amid pronounced shifts in regional geo-politics.

Analysts say Uganda has a number of options to deal with the rebels hiding in Garamba, the DR Congo. One such proposal, that Kampala appears to be considering seriously, is to confront Kony and his fighters militarily or rally regional neighbours for a joint offensive.

Dr Simba Kayunga, a political science lecturer at Makerere University, suggests though that since a scattered LRA, very distant from Uganda’s borders poses no direct threat to the country; they could as well be ignored.

“Instead of chasing for the signature of Kony, I think the best thing for government to do is address the fundamental political grievances that produced the rebellion,” said Dr Kayunga.

Pundits fear that Kony could use the present cessation of hostilities to recruit and re-arm, and return with a more lethal force to terrorise northern Uganda.

Dr Kayunga said war-affected areas should be rebuilt and national jobs/resources allocated in a way that makes disaffected societies feel accepted as part of the incumbent government and Uganda.

It is understood this approach will eliminate pockets of internal discontent and deny any overt or covert indigenous support to the LRA, who have fought President Museveni’s government for the last 20 years.

But radicals within government want quick war. Anti-Personnel Carriers (APCs) and other armoured vehicles that have been idle at the UPDF 4 Division headquarters were early this week serviced and driven around Gulu town, causing tension among civilians.

A group of soldiers in Koboko are reported to be undergoing ‘refresher drills’ near Oraba border post. Col. Sam Kavuma, the commanding officer of the Pader-based UPDF 5 Division has met a joint team of senior security officers, and a press statement issued after the sitting said Uganda was set to tackle the LRA. The officers, sources say, were drawn from the core of the command that will lead what is increasingly looking like the next violent phase in the two-decade conflict.

This paper has heard that the military has intensified security reconnaissance along the porous frontier with Sudan and DRC after Kony, for the fourth time this year, refused to put his signature to the Juba agreement. The army, however, says these are but just routine exercises.

The United States has joined the fray, expressing “disappointment” over the failure by Kony to sign the Final Peace Agreement as scheduled on November 29, suggesting that pursuing negotiations with the LRA is now a futile exercise.

Mr Steven Browning, the US Ambassador to Uganda, said: “This latest failure to sign, combined with recent atrocities committed by the LRA in eastern Congo, indicate that the LRA leadership is not committed to peace. This in turn calls into question the value of continuing the efforts of regional and international facilitators to advance the Juba peace process.”

The Friday statement, sent in reply to inquiries by Sunday Monitor, called on the rebels to immediately halt brutal attacks on civilian targets in the DRC and Western Equatoria State of Sudan, that have suffered the brunt of bloody LRA attacks in the past several months.

“The US continues to encourage the governments of Uganda, the DRC, and southern Sudan to consult together on resolving the LRA issue,” said Mr Browning.

Incidentally, the Tri-partite Plus regional grouping, comprising Rwanda, Uganda, the DRC and Burundi starts meeting tomorrow in Kigali to devise a common strategy to handle the LRA, a group that is believed to have the capacity to destabilise the entire region.

These countries, that ironically are political foes of sorts, will be carrying their differences to the negotiating table. This may impinge on consensus.

It is, however, telling that in writing off continued peace talks, Ambassador Browning appears to revive the push for a military option that Ms Jendayi Frazer, the top American diplomat for Africa, advanced earlier this year.

Uganda is sending State Defence Minister, Ruth Nankabirwa to lobby unconditional support of the neighbouring countries for military action. This would help the country, build an agreeable case for stern action against LRA based on regional consensus, when Mr Joacqim Chissano, the UN secretary-general’s special envoy for LRA war-affected areas, briefs the Security Council later this month.

Ms Nankabirwa said Uganda cannot yet attack Kony in Garamba without authorisation by regional neighbours, particularly President Joseph Kabila’s regime and the Khartoum government.

“We cannot do this (attack) alone, it must be done with the consent of other members because the LRA rebels are hiding in Congo,” she said, adding, “President Museveni is in touch with the Presidents of Rwanda, DRC, Burundi and Southern Sudan to come up with a common position on Kony.”

But the UK, one of Uganda’s key development partners, appears reluctant to support a military campaign against the rebels, which is not endorsed by the United Nations.

The British High Commission in Kampala said, “The UK is a strong supporter of the Juba process.

We regret that, despite commitments, the LRA have not signed the Final Peace Agreement. Reports of the rebels attacking in the region are deeply worrying and must stop. There will be further discussions at the UN after [former] President Chissano presents his report.”

The statement sent to Sunday Monitor urged the Uganda government to fully implement the delayed Shs1 trillion Peace, Recovery and Development Plan, expected to revive the economy and spark development besides restoring State authority in war-affected northern and far eastern regions.

This may explain why the Nairobi-branch of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) says Kony may continue to hibernate in Congo forests as long as his forces do not disturb Congolese or Sudanese citizens.

“If the LRA provoke hostility by causing havoc in the surrounding communities, the regional governments will collectively or unilaterally pay him in the same currency,” said Mr Xavier Ejoyi, a researcher with the think-tank.

The four truckloads of food, delivered to the rebels at the weekend when Kony promised to sign the pact, could settle the fighters, for now. But once the rations run out, they will likely resume raids, attracting immediate counter-attacks?

For now, indications from almost all quarters are that the UPDF are just about to commence a pre-emptive engagement against the LRA. The question is: will it succeed?

Cross posted to Uganda Watch,

UNHCR-run camps in the Rutshuru area -- Nyongera, Kasasa and Dumez -- were forcefully emptied and destroyed several weeks ago

GENEVA, December 05 2008 Reuters report:

UNHCR SAYS 90,000 CONGOLESE UNACCOUNTED FOR

More than 90,000 people who fled their homes in eastern Congo because of violence are unaccounted for, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.

Ron Redmond, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said aid workers visiting parts of North Kivu province that had been inaccessible during recent fighting had found three makeshift displacement sites empty.

Three other UNHCR-run camps in the Rutshuru area -- Nyongera, Kasasa and Dumez -- were forcefully emptied and destroyed several weeks ago, Redmond said.

"With the latest findings, the total number of IDPs who cannot be accounted for in the area has surpassed 90,000," he said, using the acronym for "internally-displaced persons", the official term for people who have fled their homes but have not crossed an international border.

The fate of those who abandoned or were forced out of the camps is unclear, but Redmond said many were thought to have returned to their villages or be staying with host families in the area.

The UNHCR and its aid partners are distributing emergency supplies in the region, hit by fighting between government troops and forces loyal to Congolese Tutsi leader General Laurent Nkunda. (Reporting by Laura MacInnis; editing by Andrew Roche)

- - -

See this site's sister blog Uganda Watch: November 27, 2008 - 27,000 Congolese civilians have fled into Uganda since August to escape violence in Rutshuru, DR Congo

DR Congo govt peace talks with Tutsi rebels Monday

GOMA, DR Congo, Dec 05 2008 Reuters report:

CONGO GOV'T TO TALK PEACE WITH TUTSI REBELS

Congo's government will meet eastern Tutsi rebels for talks in Nairobi, Kenya on Monday to formalise a ceasefire and discuss a peace process, Foreign Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba said on Friday.

He made the announcement following talks with his Rwandan counterpart in Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

(Reporting by Joe Bavier; Editing by Pascal Fletcher)

UNICEF: 3 million people in east DR Congo affected by conflict - more than 100,000 children are “on the run” in N. Kivu and S. Kivu provinces

The latest UN appeal for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is up from $600 million last year to $830 million. 3 million people in east DRC are affected by conflict and more than 100,000 children are “on the run” in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces.

Source: November 19, 2008 report from UN.org - excerpt:

UN seeks $7 billion in humanitarian aid for 2009, by far its largest ever appeal

The biggest requirement is for Sudan at just over $2 billion, with the appeal for the DRC up from $600 million last year to $830 million.

“In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), around 250,000 people are believed to have been displaced in the last two months and the situation is becoming increasingly desperate,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Executive Director Frafjord Johnson said, referring to the surge in fighting between Government and rebel forces in the east of the vast country.

She said more than 100,000 children were “on the run” in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, either with their families or separated from them. Some 3 million people in the east were affected in one way or another, either fleeing fighting or hosting the displaced. There was no doubt that there had been a spike in recruitment of children by armed groups and sexual violence had increased, with clear evidence of children and women being raped.

Envoys complete second round of talks in region to end crisis in DR Congo

From UN HQ, New York, highlights of the noon briefing by Michele Montas, Spokesperson for Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon Tuesday, December 02, 2008:

ENVOYS COMPLETE SECOND ROUND OF TALKS IN REGION TO END CRISIS IN D.R. CONGO

The Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo Olusegun Obasanjo and Co-Facilitator former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa have completed their second round of consultations in the region beginning late last week.
 
On Thursday, the Mr. Obasanjo met with President Denis Sassou Nguesso of the Republic of the Congo
.
On Friday, the Co-Facilitators consulted with President Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as with the Foreign Minister of that country.
 
On Saturday they met with the Head of the National Congress in Defense of the People (CNDP), Laurent Nkunda.
 
The Special Envoy intends to remain closely engaged with the principals and other actors in the region.
 
He looks forward to the holding of a second regional summit of Heads of State, tentatively scheduled for mid-December 2008.

DR Congo: British surgeons save boy's life by text

A British doctor volunteering in DR Congo with MSF used text message instructions from a colleague to perform a life-saving amputation on a boy.

Vascular surgeon David Nott helped the 16-year-old while working 24-hour shifts with medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in Rutshuru.

The boy's left arm had been ripped off and was badly infected and gangrenous.

Mr Nott, 52, had never performed the operation but followed instructions from a colleague who had.

The surgeon, who is based at Charing Cross Hospital in west London, said: "He was dying. He had about two or three days to live when I saw him."

The boy had been bitten by a hippo, the Daily Mail reports.

Mr Nott knew he needed to perform a forequarter amputation, which requires the surgeon to remove the collar bone and shoulder blade.

He contacted a colleague who had performed the operation before.

"I texted him and he texted back step by step instructions on how to do it," he said.

The surgeon had just one pint of blood and an elementary operating theatre, but the operation, performed in October, was a success and the teenager made a full recovery.



Photo: David Nott (C) volunteers for a month a year with the medical charity MSF

Source: BBC 03 Dec 08: SURGEON SAVES BOY'S LIFE BY TEXT

Rwandan singer Simon Bikindine sentenced to 15 years in prison by ICTR

Good news. After being arrested seven years ago in the Netherlands, the UN-backed International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda has sentenced Rwandan singer Simon Bikindine to 15 years in prison.

"Simon Bikindi used a public address system to state that the majority population, the Hutu, should rise up to exterminate the minority, the Tutsi," the judgement read.

"On his way back, Bikindi used the same system to ask if people had been killing Tutsi, who he referred to as snakes."

Source: December 02, 2008 report from the BBC - copy:

SINGER URGED RWANDANS TO GENOCIDE



Photo: Simon Bikindi founded a ballet company in Rwanda (AP/BBC)

One of Rwanda's most famous singers, Simon Bikindi, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for inciting violence during the 1994 genocide.

His conviction stems from a speech he made from a vehicle equipped with a public address system encouraging ethnic Hutus to kill Tutsis.

Prosecutors at the UN-backed tribunal based in Tanzania had called for the singer to be given a life sentence.

Some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in just 100 days.

In its judgement, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) said that several of Bikindi's songs, which were widely broadcast in Rwanda at the time, had incited hatred against Tutsis.

However, the judges said the songs were written before the genocide and there was no evidence to suggest Bikindi had performed or played them in 1994.

'Snakes'

Bikindi was convicted for a speech he made in June 1994 on the main road between Kivumu and Kayove, in north-western Rwanda.

"Simon Bikindi used a public address system to state that the majority population, the Hutu, should rise up to exterminate the minority, the Tutsi," the judgement read.

"On his way back, Bikindi used the same system to ask if people had been killing Tutsi, who he referred to as snakes."

The BBC's Jamhuri Mwavyombo at the ICTR says his lawyers are considering whether to appeal against the sentence.

Bikindi was also a sports ministry official and founded Rwanda's Irindiro Ballet.

He was arrested seven years ago in the Netherlands.

The most high-profile genocide cases are being tried by ICTR in Arusha.

Since 1997, the ICTR has convicted 29 people and acquitted five.

DRC: 250,000 Congolese forced to flee and scores of women raped are nothing more than pawns in Nkunda’s game and used as negotiating chips

From London-born Irishman Rob Crilly via From The Frontline, Dec. 01, 2008:

NKUNDA'S AT IT AGAIN

It’s 10 days or so since I left Goma and I see that it remains business as usual. A bunch of thugs are still trying to hold an equally thuggish government to ransom and the media continues to give General Laurent Nkunda far more credit than he’s due…

General Nkunda and UN special envoy, Olusegun Obasanjo

Rebel leader General Laurent Nkunda has threatened war unless the government of DR Congo holds a new round of talks.

He was speaking after a meeting with UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo in the rebel-held eastern town of Jomba.

The 250,000 people forced out of their homes by clashes over the past months, and the scores of women raped, are nothing more than pawns in Nkunda’s game. They are being used as negotiating chips and news reports like this only encourage him.

- - -

Note, Rob's unfair dig at the BBC for reporting Nkunda's warning of war.

Given Rob's statement that "the media continues to give General Laurent Nkunda far more credit than he’s due…" I wonder why Rob labels Nkunda as a thug but respectfully refers to him as a General.

My understanding is that Nkunda is a civilian and a self-appointed General. A thug and terrorist group leader. A General, no.

Surely, respectfully referring to Nkunda as a General gives him far more credit than he's due?

NKUNDA'S MEDIA WAR



Photo: Laurent Nkunda and Olesegun Obasanjo inspect rebel troops (Source: Rob Crilly's report Nkunda's Media War Nov. 17, 2008.

FDLR's goal is to return to Rwanda and topple President Kagame - Murwanashyaka's Hutu FDLR and Nkunda's Tutsi CNDP will remain enemies forever

The gunmen who executed the Rwandan genocide and now fight in the Democratic Republic of Congo will "always" kill Tutsis because the two sides "cannot mix", according to Major Vincent Habamungu, who commands the Hutus FDLR "Tiger" unit. Read more:

From The Daily Telegraph
By David Blair in Goma, 30 November 2008

CONGO: HUTUS AND TUTSIS 'WILL ALWAYS KILL EACH OTHER'

At the root of Congo's turmoil is the presence of the militias who exterminated at least 800,000 people, largely the minority Tutsis, in neighbouring Rwanda 14 years ago.

Once, they called themselves the "Interahamwe", or "those who kill together". Now, they seek respectability under a new name – the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, known by their French acronym FDLR – and their fighters are deployed in Eastern Congo's lawless provinces of North and South Kivu.

They are bitter enemies of General Laurent Nkunda, the renegade Congolese Tutsi who has thrown a noose around Goma, North Kivu's capital.

While global attention has focused on Gen Nkunda, the FDLR's presence is the central cause of the bloodshed.

Major Vincent Habamungu, who commands the FDLR's "Tiger" unit, told The Daily Telegraph that nothing could stop their campaign. "We are fighting every day because we are Hutu and they are Tutsis. We cannot mix, we are always in conflict," he said. "We will stay enemies forever."

The FDLR's official goal is to return to Rwanda and topple President Paul Kagame. Although the movement tries to disown the genocide, many believe the FDLR also wants to complete the extirpation of the Tutsis.

Gen Nkunda portrays himself as the protector of the Tutsis, who also live in eastern Congo. Hence the FLDR's presence provides the justification for his rebellion.

Today, Congo is trapped in what one United Nations official calls a "vicious circle" of conflict. As long as the FLDR fights on, Gen Nkunda's campaign will continue. But the FDLR says it will only disarm if Gen Nkunda does the same.

Major Habamungu, who spoke from the Ishasha area of North Kivu, said the FDLR would fight all the way back to Rwanda. "We came from Rwanda and we always want to go back to our homeland. We are soldiers and we want to go back as soldiers," he said.

Major Habamungu, 38, joined the army of Rwanda's previous regime 15 years ago. He denies any part in the genocide of 1994.

"I cannot be accused because personally I did nothing in the genocide. I was only a soldier and a soldier protects people," he said.

As for the FDLR's responsibility, Major Habamungu said: "Everybody killed, Tutsis and Hutus. They accuse us of carrying out the genocide, but everybody killed."

This revisionism infuriates Rwanda's government. Mr Kagame also believes that European countries have shown inexcusable lenience towards the FDLR, despite its genocidal history.

The movement's overall leader, Ignace Murwanashyaka, has found refuge in Germany, where he lives in Mannheim. Also living in Germany is the FDLR's secretary-general, Callixte Mbarashimana.

The German authorities have arrested both men from time to time – but they have always been released.

America has criticised Germany's attitude, expressing "disappointment" that both men are "able to operate with impunity although they continue to support FDLR efforts to evade justice, propagate violence, abuse civilians, and illegally exploit Congo's mineral wealth".

Under UN Resolution 1804, President Joseph Kabila of Congo is obliged to disarm and repatriate the FDLR. Instead, he views them as tacit allies against Gen Nkunda's forces.

Meanwhile, the UN is making its own efforts to encourage FDLR fighters to surrender, but these move at a snail's pace.

For his part, Major Habamungu candidly summarised his movement's ideology. "We will never live in peace with them [Tutsis]. We have to fight them all the time," he said.




Photo: FDLR soldiers at a base in Lushebere in the Massasi district, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Congolese terrorist group leader Nkunda threatens 'war' after taking border town of Ishasha, nr Goma, DR Congo

This is a vent. Why do reporters refer to Laurent Nkunda as "General"? Going by what I have gathered here at Congo Watch, he is a civilian criminal with a gang of terrifying gunmen and rapists.

In my view, Nkunda and his ilk are terrorists: terrorising, raping, maiming and murdering civilians, especially women and children, at random. They all belong in jail. I liken Nkunda to a deluded cult leader, like the drug addled Ugandan psycho LRA leader Jospeh Kony. Any evil psychopath with delusions of grandeur can get hold of a gun and call himself a General.

Look at the AFP photo here below, of Nkunda dressed all in white. Who does he think he is, the Pope or what? Why aren't the law enforcers sorting out these cretinous lowlifes?

How is Nkunda affording his luxurious array of expensive clothes and munitions? Why is he free to behave like an actor on the world's stage, lording it over the media like a pop star? Why aren't professional reporters telling us what is going on? So far, The Daily Telegraph's Africa correspondent David Blair is the only journalist giving us a clue as to what is really behind Nkunda.

If Nkunda and his ilk are not arrested soon for questioning, and put on trial to air and document their crimes, one might start suspecting that their backers are using power to influence the UN Security Council and, in the case of DR Congo, MONUC.

How else are Nkunda et al remaining free to do press interviews while roaming around with guns, instigating anarchy, rape, looting, pillaging, mass murders and environmental destruction, costing the world a fortune. What about the unimaginable misery and suffering of millions of poor defenceless locals and children. I wonder, who has such a power? I smell some rats.

Here is an excerpt from yesterday's BBC report, copied here below:

"If there is no negotiation, let us say then there is war," Gen Nkunda told reporters. "I know that (the government) has no capacity to fight, so they have only one choice - negotiations," he said.

"We asked for a response as to where, when, and with whom we are going to do these talks. For us, we propose Nairobi and for the mediator we proposed chief Obasanjo," Mr Nkunda said.

What a nerve! I say, the where, when, and with whom they are going to do these talks should be at:

THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT IN THE HAGUE, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, WITH PROSECUTOR MORENO-OCAMPO.

And, while you're at it, take along other terrorist group leaders SLA's Nur, JEM's Ibrahim and LRA's Kony and get them to sing.



Photo: Nkunda (in white) proposes Mr Obasanjo as the mediator of talks (AFP)

Vent continued. After 4.5 years of blogging hotspots in Africa, I am getting angry at continued reporting of neverending billions of taxpayers dollars being poured into Africa that ends up maintaining the careers of so-called "rebels".

African thugs without gainful employment are getting as media savvy as the Somali pirates. They pretend to be freedom fighters. All of them are only in it for themselves and the money. Their macho adventures attract so much media attention and publicity that they are being turned into celebrity heroes while they pose for photos with gun in hand, acting as role models for youngsters who may grow up believing that being a criminal is easier than doing an honest day's work to put bread on the table.

What has any of this to do with me one might ask. Ever since I was a child, I have given generously to a countless number of charities for Africa, especially Oxfam. Recently, I stopped donating because I no longer believe that the hard saved money I give is of any help. I am angry that a handful of thugs are using tax payer's money, garnered from the pockets of millions of decent hard working people, as a cash cow to milk and laugh at all the way to the bank while milliions of locals and children continue to be either raped, maimed, starved, murdered en masse or traumatised for the rest of their lives.

Genocide has become a rebels game. There's a method to their madness. I've tracked news on Sudan, South Sudan, Northern Uganda, DR Congo, Ethiopia and Niger for over 4 years, almost 24/7, and sense a pattern. The same thread of terror and land grabbing is running throughout those countries and, in my opinion, it all boils down to oil.

I say, arrest and question all rebel leaders, air and document their grievances and victims. Compared to the six billion other people on this planet, money grabbing power hungry lowlife terrorists are nothing but a handful of mosquitoes. Squash, get rid of them. They are infecting and killing the world. They are worse and more costly than AIDS and crazier than Al-Qaida.

CONGO REBEL CHIEF THREATENS 'WAR'

Saturday, 29 November 2008 report from the BBC:

Rebel leader General Laurent Nkunda has threatened war unless the government of DR Congo holds a new round of talks.

He was speaking after a meeting with UN envoy Olusegun Obasanjo in the rebel-held eastern town of Jomba.

Troops loyal to Gen Nkunda have been battling government forces in North Kivu province since August, forcing 250,000 people to flee their homes.

Two weeks ago Mr Obasanjo negotiated a ceasefire, but renewed fighting has since broken out.

"If there is no negotiation, let us say then there is war," Gen Nkunda told reporters.

"I know that (the government) has no capacity to fight, so they have only one choice - negotiations," he said.

"We asked for a response as to where, when, and with whom we are going to do these talks. For us, we propose Nairobi and for the mediator we proposed chief Obasanjo," Mr Nkunda said.

Government ministers this week rebuffed the possibility of direct negotiations with the rebel leader, calling for him to return to an earlier peace pact signed in January.

Emerging from his one-hour meeting, Mr Obasanjo avoided questions but said: "We have advanced the course of peace."

Mr Obasanjo - Nigeria's former president - is on his second visit to the region in two weeks.

He has been trying to broker direct talks between Gen Nkunda and Congolese President Joseph Kabila, but so far these have not taken place.

The UN envoy is travelling with former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa, who is representing the African Union.

"I'm going to listen to him," Mr Mkapa said ahead of the meeting with Gen Nkunda.

"I want to know how he thinks we can get the restoration of peace, stability and unity in this country."
Truce violated

A ceasefire declared by Gen Nkunda has halted battles with government troops and brought nearly two weeks of relative calm.

But his men have continued attacking Congolese and Rwandan militia allies of the government, sending thousands of refugees fleeing east into Uganda.

Gen Nkunda says the ceasefire does not apply to operations against foreign militia.

On Thursday, the rebels took the border town of Ishasha, about 120km (75 miles) north of regional capital Goma.

His Tutsi-dominated forces say they are attacking Rwandan Hutu fighters, some of whom are accused of taking part in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, in which some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered.

On Friday, the UN began an operation to relocate people from camps near the front line.

Some 65,000 people displaced by fighting have been living only a few hundred metres from fighting positions in Kibati, near Goma.

The UN is trying to transfer people to safer locations west of Goma.

FORCES AROUND GOMA

CNDP: Gen Nkunda's Tutsi rebels - 6,000 fighters
FDLR: Rwandan Hutus - 6-7,000
Mai Mai: pro-government militia - 3,500
Monuc: UN peacekeepers - 6,000 in North Kivu, including about 1,000 in Goma (17,000 nationwide)
DRC army - 90,000 (nationwide)
Source: UN, military experts (BBC)

(Cross posted today at Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch)

Petition demanding that the UN in Congo (MONUC) arrest the notorious war criminal Nkunda now

For people everywhere who are outraged about war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by NKUNDA, a Petition was started by http://www.arrestnkundanow.org on November 25, 2008, saying:

We, the undersigned, make an urgent appeal to MONUC to fulfill its international obligations and immediately arrest Nkunda accused war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The continuing horrific killing of civilians testifies that Human Rights Watch was absolutely reasonable in its warning then in 2006 and it’s today. “So long as Nkunda is at large, the civilian population remains at grave risk"

We call on MONUC to arrest Nkunda immediately now without further delay

French translation:

Nous, soussignés, lançons un appel pressant à la MONUC de remplir ses obligations internationales et immédiatement arrêter Nkunda accusé de crimes de guerre et crimes contre l'humanité

La poursuite des horribles meurtres de civils témoigne que Human Rights Watch a été tout à fait raisonnable dans son avertissement depuis 2006 et il est aujourd'hui. "Aussi longtemps que Nkunda est en liberté, la population civile demeure en grand danger"

Nous demandons à la MONUC d'arrêter Nkunda immédiatement maintenant sans plus tarder.

To date, there are 279 signatures. I added mine today.



Photo: Nkunda denies accusations of rape and looting on the part of his forces [AFP] Source: Friday, 31 October 2008 (Aljazeera and agencies) report: Rebel move sees DR Congo city empty

"We are asking for freedom and we also have to fight for it" - Laurent Nkunda, speaking to Al Jazeera (Posted to Congo Watch 30 Oct 08)

Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops

This report tells us that Congolese war criminal Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops, but wanted smaller countries such as Norway - not an EU member - to send contributions to the UN peacekeeping mission MONUC, or engage otherwise militarily.

What makes him think he is in a negotiable position? He should be in jail.

DRC rebel leader wants Norwegian mediation

November 27, 2008 (afrol News) report by staff writer:

Congolese rebel leader Laurent Nkunda has called on the Norwegian government, which has led several international peace mediations, to intervene in the armed conflict and humanitarian crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The Congolese rebel leader has made several advances towards Norway, politicians from the Nordic country revealed today. General Nkunda said he would trust the Norwegians due to their experience in peace mediation and Norway's very limited economic and political interests in his country.

Mr Nkunda today confirmed this to reporters from Norway's public broadcaster 'NRK' on telephone from eastern DRC. He again made an appeal to the Oslo government to get involved in the Congolese conflict.

Asked whether he believed that Norwegian mediators could achieve anything UN mediator and Nigerian ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo was unable to achieve, General Nkunda answered it was not a question of choosing. He "several times" had suggested to the Norwegian government that they should "assist" Mr Obasanjo in his ongoing mediation.

He also hailed a UN request for Norwegian peacekeepers in the DRC. "That is a very good idea. EU troops, no, but Norwegian troops I could trust." Mr Nkunda made it clear he would not accept EU troops, but wanted smaller countries such as Norway - not an EU member - to send contributions to the UN peacekeeping mission MONUC, or engage otherwise militarily.

Norway's government so far has been lukewarm when it comes to sending troops to the DRC, but Development Cooperation Minister Erik Solheim - who is also the peace mediator in Sri Lanka - immediately answered the Congolese rebel leader's request. He promised the Oslo government would go through the troop request again, having Mr Nkunda's desire in mind.

Mr Solheim also did not rule out a Norwegian effort to assist in DRC peace negotiations. Also other political leaders in Oslo gave their immediate support to look into the Congolese rebel leader's request.

Norway has a long history of international peace mediation, with the "Oslo process" between Israel and Palestine being the most known. Norway-mediated peaces also include Guatemala and Sri Lanka. In Africa, the Oslo government has been strongly involved in the South Sudan peace and is now trying to mediate between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

The DRC rebel leader to calling for Norwegian mediation has been seen as a sign of his Tutsi rebel movement being sincere in wanting to reach a peaceful solution to the eastern Congo conflict.

LRA's Kony to sign peace deal in Ri-Kwangba, South Sudan Nov. 29 says chief mediator Riek Machar

Kony signs peace on Saturday
November 26, 2008 (New Vision) report by Henry Mukasa:

Photo: LRA leader Joseph Kony

LRA leader Joseph Kony is expected to sign the final peace deal on Saturday to end his two-decade long rebellion which ravaged the north, said the chief mediator, Dr. Riek Machar.

Addressing journalists in Juba yesterday, Machar said: “(Kony) said he will sign. Indications are that he will.”

Machar is also the vice president of South Sudan. “There will be signing on 29th [November],” the United Nations special envoy to LRA affected areas, Joachim Chissano, told the BBC.

Chissano, however, left room for disappointment considering that Kony has failed the peace talks many times in the past.

“I don’t have reasons to doubt that he will show up. I’m more confident than a few weeks ago,” the former Mozambique president said.

Chief Government negotiator Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda yesterday chaired an impromptu meeting with his team over the development.

Spokesperson Capt. Chris Magezi said after the meeting that the mediators had been informed of the “consistent signals” Kony has been sending.

“We are willing to go and participate in that function in Ri-Kwangba (South Sudan),” Magezi said. “We hope Kony is not fooling again as he has done in the past.”

He also hoped that Kony would also meet his obligations after the signing. The Rugunda team, he said, would fly to the signing venue on Friday only if Machar and Chissano, who travelled to Ri-Kwangba today, confirmed the elusive rebel leader had arrived.

If he signs, it will mark a climax of the long-drawn negotiations. Kony disappointed mediators and diplomats when he failed to show up for the signing ceremony on April 14 at Nabanga.

He said he would only sign if the world court withdrew charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against him.

He also wanted to understand how the traditional justice system and the special court which is to try war criminals would work.

However, foreign minister Sam Kutesa said Kony must first sign the peace before his indictment by The Hague is addressed.

Kutesa said Kony was the only serious obstacle to a final peace agreement.

“Our people are ready to sign any time, but Kony is the one who has been eluding us,” he told the BBC.

After a flurry of diplomatic missions to his hideout by Chissano, and a consultative meeting in Munyonyo last week, Kony seems to have been persuade to ink the deal.

Kony and his fighters had moved deep into the DR Congo, where they loot and abduct youth in “preparation for war.”

However, mediators gave Kony up to the end of November to sign the pact. The LRA leader had often called meetings with negotiators and elders from the north but failed to show up.

Cross posted to Sudan Watch and Uganda Watch

Telegraph Exclusive: DR Congo rebels recruited from Rwanda army - Wealthy Rwandans need Nkunda to protect their interests in E. Congo

The Daily Telegraph's Africa correspondent David Blair is in Goma! Trust him to come up with an exclusive report telling us that Rwanda is allowing its territory to be used as a recruiting ground for the rebel movement behind the DR Congo's latest bloodshed, according to first-hand accounts. Here is a copy of the report and accompanying video:
 
The Daily Telegraph, UK
DR Congo rebels recruited from Rwanda army
By David Blair in Goma, DR Congo
Last Updated: 12:20PM UK GMT 20 Nov 2008

Evidence gathered by The Daily Telegraph contradicts Rwanda's official denial of any role in the war in the eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where 250,000 people have endured months of suffering since they were forced to flee their homes.

Instead, fighters recruited from inside Rwanda's army have joined General Laurent Nkunda's rebels in Congo.

Rwanda is one of Britain's closest African allies, receiving £46 million of aid last year. President Paul Kagame appears to be treading a thin line between officially helping the rebels and turning a blind eye to their use of Rwandan territory.

A 27-year-old fighter in Gen Nkunda's movement said that he served as a platoon commander in Rwanda's army until last month.

"There are many former Rwandan soldiers with the CNDP [Gen Nkunda's rebels]. When I was still in the Rwandan army, I was in touch with them. They wanted me to join the CNDP," he said. "I decided to join them because fighting for the CNDP is like fighting for Rwanda."

Gen Nkunda's stated goal is to eliminate the militias who murdered at least 800,000 people in the Rwandan genocide of 1994. These armed groups have found refuge in eastern Congo and Rwanda has a vital interest in neutralising them. Hence Rwanda and Gen Nkunda share common aims.

The rebel, who asked to remain anonymous, said that Gen Nkunda needed more fighters when he launched his offensive in August. Rwandan officers who were in touch with the rebels quietly conveyed the need for recruits.

Along with seven other Rwandan soldiers, the fighter crossed the Rwinyoni border post shortly before Gen Nkunda advanced towards Goma, eastern Congo's main city, last month.

"We met our friends from the CNDP on the Congo side. They gave us new uniforms," said the rebel.

The fighter described himself as a "deserter" from Rwanda's army and an "ex-Rwandan soldier", saying that he destroyed his military identity card. But he added that Rwandan officers are aware of the flow of former soldiers over the frontier.

Some are deserters, others have been officially demobilised. But Rwanda's highly centralised government has full control over its borders. The authorities could almost certainly stop this movement of recruits for Congo's rebels.

Instead, it has become a long-standing tradition. Another 28-year-old rebel said that he was demobilised from Rwanda's army in 2006. He crossed the border into Congo and joined Gen Nkunda six months later.

"I am a soldier, not a politician," he said. "I am fighting to protect our community here in Congo."

Gen Nkunda has proclaimed himself the protector of the Tutsis in eastern Congo. The presence of genocidal militias who tried to eradicate Rwanda's Tutsis 14 years ago amounts to a constant threat.

These gunmen, who once called themselves the Interahamwe, or "those who kill together", are the prime cause of eastern Congo's chaos. For as long as they remain at large, Gen Nkunda's rebellion will continue - with tacit Rwandan support.

But great wealth is also at stake. Wealthy Rwandans, including members of the government, have farming and mining interests in eastern Congo.

They need Gen Nkunda to protect these assets. Meanwhile, the rebels must finance their campaign. Gen Nkunda's movement is believed to hold bank accounts in Rwanda's capital, Kigali.

Despite this, Gen Nkunda is not a puppet of Rwanda's government. He possesses an independent agenda and copes with deep splits inside his movement. But the neighbouring country serves as a crucial recruiting and financial centre.

Now we know, thanks to David Blair, that, surprise, surprise, the death and destruction affecting millions of Congolese all boils down to a wealthy few with farming and mining interests in eastern Congo, not for the benefit of poor locals. Spit. Criminals freely running around inciting anarchy and mass murder make me sick.

Surely, violent overthrow of government is unacceptable in this day and age. In Africa, I hope that SLA's Nur, JEM's brahim, LRA's Kony and CNDP's Nkunda and their followers and sponsors are put on trial for crimes against humanity and imprisoned for life for inciting anarchy and mass murder, not to mention the cost to ordinary hardworking taxpayers' around the world involved in having to send billions of dollars worth of aid.

We can't afford to prop up gun toting gangsters and give them the world's stage. I'm feeling angry after years of blogging about these so-called "rebels". For the locals things just get worse while power crazed opportunists just get more rich and deluded like dimwitted pop celebrities believing their own hype. Where is the outrage while UN peacekeepers are being slain all over Africa because of a handul of gun toting psychos? The world is sick. Puke.
- - -

UN seeks $7 billion in humanitarian aid for 2009, by far its largest ever appeal - November 19, 2008 report from UN.org - excerpt:

The biggest requirement is for Sudan at just over $2 billion, with the appeal for the DRC up from $600 million last year to $830 million.

“In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), around 250,000 people are believed to have been displaced in the last two months and the situation is becoming increasingly desperate,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Deputy Executive Director Frafjord Johnson said, referring to the surge in fighting between Government and rebel forces in the east of the vast country.

She said more than 100,000 children were “on the run” in North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, either with their families or separated from them. Some 3 million people in the east were affected in one way or another, either fleeing fighting or hosting the displaced. There was no doubt that there had been a spike in recruitment of children by armed groups and sexual violence had increased, with clear evidence of children and women being raped.

ICC trial of Congo war crimes suspect Thomas Lubanga to restart in January

More good news of another degenerate Congolese. November 18, 2008 report by Reuters - ICC to restart Lubanga trial in January:

(THE HAGUE) The trial of Congo war crimes suspect Thomas Lubanga will restart on January 26 as prosecutors are now releasing key documents to the defence, judges at the International Criminal Court said on Tuesday.

The world's first permanent war crimes tribunal halted the trial of the Congolese militia leader in June due to concerns he could be denied a fair trial as the defence could not view some evidence against him. Lubanga remained in detention.

Lubanga, handed over to the court in 2006, is accused of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15 in Democratic Republic of Congo's northeastern Ituri district. He has denied the charges.



The trial was halted when the prosecution could not share about 150 documents from the United Nations and other sources that could help Lubanga's case because they were provided on the condition of confidentiality to protect sources on the ground.

The prosecution has now resolved the confidentiality issues and the ICC said in a statement it was lifting the stay on proceedings. It gave the prosecution until 1500 GMT on November 19 to arrange complete disclosure of the documents to the defence.

The court last month ruled that by refusing to disclose the documents, prosecutors had effectively prevented the court from assessing evidence and determining whether a fair trial was possible.

The halt to Lubanga's trial was seen as a major setback for the court set up in 2002, which now has 106 member states and is also investigating crimes in Sudan's Darfur region, Uganda and the Central African Republic.

I say, lock him up for life and throw away the key.
- - -

UPDATE on Thursday, 20 Nov 2008: ICC says Thomas Lubanga Dyilo will remain in custody

18.11.2008
Thomas Lubanga Dyilo will remain in custody
During a hearing today, Trial Chamber I decided not to grant the release nor provisional release of Mr Thomas Lubanga Dyilo.

18.11.2008
Stay of proceedings in the Lubanga case is lifted - trial provisionally scheduled for 26 January 2009
Today, Trial Chamber I decided to lift the stay of proceedings in the case of The Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubana Dyilo that had been imposed on 13 June 2008.

17.11.2008
Media Advisory: Public hearing of the Lubanga case on 18 November 2008
On Tuesday 18 November 2008, Trial Chamber I is scheduled to hold a public Status Conference on the Lubanga case

Source: ICC

ICC judges to review LRA cases in light of deal between Kampala and LRA - Ugandan army and LRA guilty of crimes against humanity says AI & UHRC

Oyeee! At long last, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and Uganda's army (UPDF) are coming under the world's spotlight.

Give up and get down to doing an honest day's work all you cretinous lazy bum terrorists. We're watching you drugged up lowlife cowards getting your jollies from raping and killing women and children.

After seven long years, the West's war on terrorists and war criminals is starting to come to fruition. We'll get you. Plenty of room is now in place to accommodate war criminals at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

We use thermal imaging and satellites to track and watch you hiding under bushes. There's no hiding place for you on Earth. Big Brother knows where you are and what you are doing day and night.

Reports released on Monday by UK-based Amnesty International and Uganda Human Rights Activists (UHRC) find the LRA and UPDF guilty of crimes against humanity.

Uganda army guilty of crimes against humanity - AI, UHRC reports
November 17, 2008 PANA report from Kampala, Uganda via Afriquenligne:

As embattled Ugandan government accuses the vicious rebel force of the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) of committing all sorts of atrocities on hapless civilians in the war-wrecked northern region, human rights groups have found its army guilty of committing similar crimes against humanity.

In separate "stinging" reports obtained Monday, both Amnesty International (AI) and Uganda Human Rights Activists (UHRC) accused the Uganda People Defence Forces (UPDF) of turning their guns against civilians during their counter-insurgency operations against LRA and disarmament operations in the country's north-eastern sub-region.

AI, a UK-based human rights group, in a report based on a five-month study in no rthern Uganda districts of Gulu, Amuru, Kitgum, Pader and Lira, found widespread sexual and physical abuses perpetrated by both the government soldiers and rebels, leaving their victims traumatised.

"Hundreds are left impaired, unable to fend for themselves any more, yet discriminated by relatives and state authorities," Dr. Godfrey Odongo, AI researcher for East Africa and lead author of the report, stated.

"Many years on, victims and survivors of human rights violations still bear the scars of these violations (and) little has been done to ensure that they access effective reparations to address their continued suffering and help them to rebuild their lives.

"There was general impunity for soldiers who committed Human Rights violations a gainst civilians."

Dr. Odongo, who described the stinging reports as forward looking, said they focused on reparations rather than what happened or the violations suffered, citing a host of victims giving harrowing testimonies of the suffering they are undergong, caused by UPDF.

Geoffrey Okumu, a war victim, was quoted in the report as saying, in May 1990, government soldiers stormed their neighborhood, arrested and killed his father an d brother on allegations of being LRA rebel collaborators and possessing illegal guns.

"My father and brother denied the accusations but the soldiers took them away. Not very far from where I remained, I heard gunshots and later realised they had been killed. We had lost a bread winner (so) I dropped out of school to fend for my siblings," AI quoted Okumu as testifying.

In Amuru district, the reports quoted Rose Apio as saying that she watched four of her relatives die after being shot by government soldiers and is now struggling to raise four orphans left by her eldest brother killed in the bizarre shooting.

Martin Abit, 38, a resident of Pader District told AI that UPDF soldiers arrested his elder brother, a non-combatant, during a counter-attack on LRA and he was later killed together with "several other people".

"The UPDF battalion (in the area) took his body with them and promised to give the body to the family for burial but to this day, the body has never been returned to our family for burial," the reports quoted Abit as alleging.

"It is not clear if the government army took the corpse away to destroy evidence that would otherwise incriminate them in committing murder or for ritual purposes, a common practice in some parts of the country.

"Survivors need medical attention, counseling and psychological support. Formerly abducted children need access to education," the UK-based rights group asserted.

"Families need compensation for the deaths and injuries that occurred, restitution for their destroyed land and property, an apology for the violations and proper reburials for their loved ones.

"The government needs to start acting on these needs now," the report added in conclusion.

As usual, Army and Ministry of Defence Spokesman, Major Paddy Ankuda, poured scorn on the reports, saying AI cannot be taken seriously because people who should have given the side of the UPDF account were available but were never contacted.

"If there is any incriminating evidence that our soldier kills anyone, there is no shortcut; they face the law," Ankuda said on telephone Monday afternoon.

"The fresh allegations of human rights abuses by the UPDF chronicled by AI are "outrageous and indefensible," Ankuda shot back.

Since the United Nations sponsored International Criminal Court (ICC) issued warrants of arrest for LRA leadership to answer multiple charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, courtesy of Uganda government, there has been voices saying Uganda army too should face trial in the Hauge.

The indictment remains a sticking issue in the country's peace process brokered by Southern Sudan Vice President Dr. Reick Macar, with LRA leader Joseph Kony refusing to sign the final peace pact if not withdrawn.

Uganda Human Rights Activists (UHRA), in a separate report, stated that soldiers deployed in the disarmament programme code-named 'Operation Restore Hope' in July this year, are torturing and extorting money from residents in Teso and Karamoja sub-regions.

According to the report, Mr. John Ogwang, a resident of Kokong Parish, Kapir Sub-county, in Kumi District, died after he was reportedly tortured by soldiers in an attempt to get a gun from him.

"The late Ogwang was arrested 2 September by soldiers under the command of Major Alfred Obore Opio, from his village.

"They tied his arms behind the back before taking him to Kapir military barracks while being tortured to reveal where he kept a gun.

"By the time they reached (the barracks), Ogwang's body was swollen from head totoes. At the military detach, he was starved for two days till he collapsed," UHRC cited one, out of host of cases in its report.

"Although the operation has good intentions of getting rid of illegal guns in Teso, the officers have abused their authority and should be brought to book," the report, signed by UHRA Coordinator, Valentine Moses Oleico, suggested.

The 3rd Division spokesperson, Captain Henry Obbo, was quoted to have confirmed Ogwang's death, saying "he died while in transit from Kapir military detachment to Soroti police" base.

Captain Obbo also dismissed reports that Ogwang was starved to death while in their harsh custody.

I say, about time too! Too little attention has been paid to the atrocities committed by the LRA in Uganda, South Sudan, CAR and recently in the DR of Congo where they are hiding out in the jungle. No doubt special forces are on their trail.

Since the LRA have been on the rampage all over the place, why not in Chad, Darfur, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, I ask myself. Why have they been allowed to be on the rampage for 20 years? Who is behind this psycho terrorist group?

After 4.5 years of bloging news on the LRA, the conclusion I have reached is that they are off their heads, as high as kites on mind altering substances, and are worse than Al-Qaeda. More later.

See Uganda Watch, Thursday, November 20, 2008 - ICC judges to review LRA cases in light of deal between Kampala and LRA: Rethink comes in light of a deal between Kampala and the LRA providing for domestic war crimes prosecutions.
Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR)
Date: Wednesday, 19 November 2008
By Katy Glassborow in The Hague and Joe Wacha in Gulu, northern Uganda (AR No. 193, 19-Nov-08).

[Cross posted today at Uganda Watch and Sudan Watch]