Rebel threat sparks flight of western residents

Hundreds of residents of Nkooko sub-county and neighbouring Kibale District in western Uganda have fled after rebels threatened to “hit these areas again”. The semi-official newspaper, ‘The New Vision’, quoted John Ssemanda, a local council official, as saying that rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) had threatened to attack the area again to “avenge the theft of their loot”. He said more than 100 families in Nkooko sub-county had taken refuge in Gayaza and Ntwetwe sub-counties in Kiboga District, also in western Uganda. He said other families from Ssunga parish were streaming into Kakumiro and Bukumi sub-counties. Ssemanda said the rebels had abandoned part of their loot at Ssunga after a recent attack, but found it missing on their return. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni at the weekend reiterated his call for rebels “in the bush” to take advantage of the government amnesty by surrendering to the authorities. Museveni was meeting leaders, elders and heads of security organs from Kibale, Radio Uganda, monitored by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), reported. He said all Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) positions in Kibale and other districts affected by rebel activities would be reinforced so that “order and security is [sic] restored”.