The Ugandan military said it had recovered 31 guns and 751 live rounds of ammunition in the northeastern part of the country, also known as Karamoja.
The military in a statement issued here Saturday said 25 suspects who acknowledged illegal ownership of guns were detained in the Saturday cordon and search operation.
The Third Division Commander Joseph Balikudembe said some of the suspects are from neighboring northwestern Kenya.
Balikudembe urged the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to closely coordinate and participate with the Ugandan army especially along the borderlines in the ongoing disarmament operation in order to pacify the pastoralist communities. “We have an agreement with KDF to deploy and ensure borderline security as part of the big spectrum of disarmament operations.”
The military in July 2021 launched a disarmament operation, dubbed “Usalama Kwa Wote,” to rid northeastern Uganda of illegal guns used in cattle rustling.
After close 20 years of relative calm following an earlier forceful disarmament exercise in 2002, the Karimojong warriors returned to carry out deadly attacks and cattle raids in the hard-to-reach area, according to the military. Enditem
