African Union deploys 5,000 military troops in Uganda to hunt down the rebel Joseph Kony 2603122

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Defense News - Uganda
 
 
Monday, March 26, 2012, 09:12 AM
 
African Union deploys 5,000 military troops in Uganda to hunt down the rebel Joseph Kony.

The African Union (AU) will starting on Saturday deploy 5,000 troops to hunt down Uganda' s notorious rebel leader Joseph Kony who is said to be operating in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Central African Republic (CAR), an AU envoy said here.
     
The African Union (AU) will starting on Saturday deploy 5,000 troops to hunt down Uganda' s notorious rebel leader Joseph Kony who is said to be operating in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Central African Republic (CAR), an AU envoy said here.
Joseph Rao Kony is the chief of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan guerrilla group.
     

Francisco Caetano Madeira, Special Envoy of the AU for the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) issue on Friday told reporters here , 40km south of the Uganda capital Kampala that the troops drawn from Uganda, South Sudan, CAR and DRC will be based in Yambio, South Sudan.

"The troops are well trained in guerilla warfare to deal with guerilla army. They are better trained and professional who are going to ensure Kony is captured, surrenders or killed," said Madeira, noting that the troops will headed by Uganda's Col. Dick Olum.

"We are going to ensure to put an end to Kony atrocities, damage, suffering, gruesome murders and massacres and make sure the peace and stability prevails in the region," he added.

He said the AU authorized force is working in cooperation the U. S. and the European Union to hunt down the LRA who also caused havoc in northern Uganda killing tens of thousands of people and making over two million others homeless.

"The U.S. is helping us in intelligence and tracking Kony. We hope we shall get him soon or neutralize him completely," he said.

He said if arrested Kony will be taken to the International Criminal Court (ICC) where is facing charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

"If he surrenders, he will be tried. He has to go through Mato Oput (Acholi traditional justice system) and go to ICC. There is no way we can save him from that. We don't have to lie to Kony," said Madeira.

He said that Kony still has a window of opportunity by signing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement which he negotiated with the Ugandan government for two years starting 2006.