BUNDIBUGYO, Uganda — Ugandan authorities confirmed late Tuesday that security forces successfully neutralized the leader of a weekend assault on police and military bases, identifying him as a “traditional herbalist.”
The coordinated attack, which began on Saturday, targeted three remote districts in western Uganda: Bundibugyo, Kasese, and Fort Portal, along the volatile border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Insurgents armed with submachine guns and machetes launched attacks on several police and military posts, resulting in the deaths of at least one civilian and one soldier.
An army official stationed in Bundibugyo told this publication that the group was seeking to “acquire weapons to start a tribal militia” but had been successfully repulsed by the security forces.
Commander identified and neutralized
The ringleader of the assault was identified as Christian Asuman Muganzi, a “traditional herbalist,” according to Albert Kaliruga, the deputy head of security for the region.
Muganzi was cornered at his hideout in Kakuka, Bundibugyo, on Tuesday.
Kaliruga told Vivid Voice News that Muganzi was killed along with “over 20” of his fighters, with an additional 15 others arrested.
Kaliruga detailed the use of the herbalist’s sanctuary for recruitment and indoctrination:
“He was using his shrine at Kakuka to indoctrinate and recruit people to join his criminal group,” Kaliruga said.
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Evidence recovered at the scene further supported the security forces’ claims regarding his methods:
“At his shrine, we recovered traditional herbs, fetishes and other items he has been using to indoctrinate his recruits and apparently to protect them during battles,” he added.
Persistent threat on the western border
The incident evokes memories of Uganda’s history of violent insurgencies, notably the decades-long, barbaric campaign led by the cultish militant Joseph Kony throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
Today, Uganda faces persistent security threats along its western frontier with the DRC, a remote region characterized by lawlessness and the presence of numerous armed militias, including an affiliate of the Islamic State group.
