Fifteen die in inter-clan violence in Karamoja region

At least 15 people, mainly women and children, were shot dead while 10 others were wounded this week when inter-clan fighting erupted in Uganda's northeastern region of Karamoja, officials said on Thursday. "The attack on Kodike village left 13 people dead, mainly children and women, while five others were injured," Richard Nambafu, the resident district commissioner for Moroto, one of Karamoja's district's, told IRIN. He said the wounded were being treated at a local hospital. Nambafu said warriors from the Pian clan attacked their Bokora rivals on Monday in revenge for a cattle-rustling raid the previous day that had left seven Pians wounded. "In the Sunday attack, the Pian clan of Nakapiripirit District suffered seven injuries and by today two of those injured had died while the others were still undergoing treatment," Nambafu said. He said he had visited Kodike village - the scene of the attack - with other leaders and found that the 13 dead had been buried. "If it was at night, the fatalities would have been terrible, but because it was day time, many people escaped," Nambafu added. Officials said during Sunday's attack on the Pian, the Bokora stole 450 head of cattle. "The motive of the Monday's raid was purely revenge by the Pian against the Bokora," Nambafu said. The Pian and Bokora clans most recently clashed in July, leaving at least 19 people dead. Seven government soldiers were among the victims. The pastoralist clans often clash over the control of cattle and access to water and pasture. The attacks have become increasingly bloody in recent years as rival clans discarded bows and arrows, for guns. Since the Ugandan government launched a drive to disarm communities in the region in 2001, about 10,000 of an estimated 40,000 guns in circulation have been recovered. Many clans have hidden their guns, reasoning that their surrender would render them vulnerable to attacks from rival groups across the frontiers in neighbouring Kenya and Sudan.