Ugandan army to join Congo in offensive against rebels

The Ugandan and Congo armies are setting up an operations centre in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo for a joint offensive against rebels who have killed hundreds of people in the last year, Congo’s government said.
On Sunday, a delegation from the Ugandan Peoples Defence Force (UPDF) including the commander of Uganda’s ground forces arrived in Beni in Congo’s North Kivu province to establish a coordination centre for the two armies, Kinshasa’s communications ministry said on Wednesday.
On May 3, Congo introduced martial law in North Kivu and Ituri provinces in the hope of addressing worsening bloodshed in a swathe of territory along its border with Uganda.
A militia with roots in Uganda, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), is believed to be responsible for much of the recent violence, killing around 850 people last year, according to UN figures.
“The (Congolese army) and the UPDF are determined to fight the ADF,” Congo’s Ministry of Information said in a statement, without giving further details.
The ADF has carried out a spate of reprisal attacks on civilians since Congo’s army began operations against it in late 2019.

Olajumoke Adeleke