Celia and David Barlow on their wedding day.
- The suspected ringleader of the terrorists implicated in the Queen Elizabeth National Park murders has been arrested along with some of his men.
- After eight years, the killers of a former Ugandan prosecutor have also been arrested in Kampala.
- The UK and US have advised their nationals to avoid public events and religious gatherings in Uganda.
Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni announced on Thursday suspects linked to the terrorist group that killed a honeymooning couple as well as their Ugandan driver are in custody.
In early October, Briton David Barlow and South African Celia Geyer were killed, along with their tour guide, and their vehicle burned just outside the Queen Elizabeth National Park, a popular destination for South African tourists.
A week later, Museveni said security forces had identified five suspects.
In a statement issued on Thursday, he added the ringleader named “Njovu” has been in custody for more than a week.
Museveni said the number of terrorists who killed the tourists was 10 instead of five.
“Njovu was injured and captured, and three of his group were killed – one at Kasiindi and two in the water aboard a boat in Lake Edward,” he added.
Njovu and his gang, according to Museveni, were also linked to the killing of children at Lhubiriha School.
They also burned a truck carrying onions (for the school) and unsuccessfully tried to attack some parked trucks in Kasiindi, on the Democratic Republic of Congo side of the border.
READ | Loved ones mourn SA executive, British husband killed in Ugandan terror attack
Museveni also announced a breakthrough in the 2015 murder of Joan Kagezi.
At the time, Kagezi was the assistant director of public prosecutions and head of the International Criminal Division in Uganda’s Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.
She was killed on her way home.
“I also, again, congratulate the security forces on the arrest of the four suspects in the killing of Joan Kagezi, the prosecutor,” Museveni said.
He added he had instructed his security forces to “wipe out” the Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamist rebel group.
“Within Uganda, the security forces are guarding the pre-prepared public functions like the controversial Nyege Nyege and the Kyabazinga wedding,” Museveni said.
Nyege Nyege is a popular music festival in Kampala that promotes Afrobeat and popular culture. It gets under way on Thursday.
The Kyabazinga wedding will be held on 18 November.
It is a royal wedding for the traditional chief of the ruler of the Kingdom of Busoga in Uganda, William Wilberforce Gabula Nadiope IV.
With a fragile security situation, the US and UK embassies in Uganda have issued warnings to their nationals to avoid public gatherings in Uganda, such as religious events.
Both embassies clearly stated they should avoid the Queen Elizabeth National Park.
The News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained herein do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
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