clear

Creating new perspectives since 2009

25 students killed as rebels attack school in western Uganda

June 17, 2023 at 3:15 pm

Uganda security forces are seen standing at the premises of an attack in Mpondwe, Uganda, on June 17, 2023 [Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images]

Terrorists on Friday night attacked a secondary school in western Uganda’s district of Kasese, killing 25 students and injuring eight others seriously, according to police, Anadolu reports.

In a statement, police spokesman Fred Enanga said that after killing the students, the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels looted the property before setting the schools’ dormitories on fire.

“Last night, the ADF rebels attacked the Lhubirira Secondary School in Mpondwe municipality, located about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the DR Congo border. So far, 25 bodies have been recovered from the school and transferred to Bwera hospital,” said the spokesman, adding that eight injured students were also taken to the hospital.

The rebels fled towards Virunga National Game Park in DR Congo where the Ugandan army and police are pursuing them.

The ADF rebels originated from western Uganda in the late 1990s with the intention of overthrowing President Yoweri Museveni’s regime but were overpowered by the Ugandan army. They fled to the forests in eastern DR Congo, from where they often launch attacks on villages and kill innocent people.

READ: Algeria president: ‘Algerians were born and will remain free’