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- Yoweri Museveni said five Allied Democratic Forces terrorists were behind the killing of a South African/British couple last week.
- Museveni called on ordinary people to get involved in hunting down the suspects.
- The Uganda People's Defence Force launched an attack on an ADF base on Friday.
Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni said security forces were on the tail of five terrorists suspected of having killed a South African and a Briton, who were on honeymoon last week.
David Barlow and Celia Geyer were killed, along with their tour guide, and their vehicle burnt just outside Queen Elizabeth National Park, a popular destination for South African tourists.
To date, however, authorities have yet to disclose their names.
In a statement, President Museveni said the suspects were "being hunted in the area to the left of Bweera-Kikoroongo Road, as you come from Bweera".
The suspects have been identified as five members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).
READ | South African and Briton on honeymoon killed in Ugandan terrorist attack
The ADF is an Islamist rebel group, which operates in both Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
It began its operations in western Uganda, but has since spread to the neighbouring DRC.
The killing of the two tourists, although the tourism sector said it was an isolated incident, could affect an industry still on a recovery path since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Museveni said the terrorists were no longer a military threat.
"The Uganda People's Defence Force should involve the police and the wananchi [ordinary people] to hunt for these groups running from Congo."
Museveni said:
Since early September, Museveni has been granted permission by the DRC's President Felix Tshisekedi to hunt for ADF terrorists hiding in the DRC.
A number of their bases have been attacked - and, in retaliation, the ADF has been launching banditry in civilian areas inside Uganda.
ALSO READ | From bombing rebels in DRC to jailing the opposition back home, Uganda's Museveni is a busy man
On Friday, Museveni said he had "paid a serious visit to the ADF terrorists in Congo. Our gunships attacked a big camp of these criminals, 60 kilometres from the border, on the Ntoroko side".
"The attack was devastating because it was a clear target and the reconnaissance plane was monitoring from the air."
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
