Ugandan army ends manhunt for Joseph Kony, guerrilla leader

April 20, 2017

Uganda’s military leaders have ended a long quest to capture Joseph Kony, the self-styled leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), who is wanted by international tribunals for multiple war crimes.

The LRA had plagued central Africa for more than two decades, carrying out murderous raids and kidnappings in Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic. The UN estimates that Kony’s troops are responsible for killing over 100,000 people and kidnapping at least 50,000 children—many of whom were pressed into service with the LRA.

However, Ugandan military spokesmen say that Kony now has only about 100 followers, and is “weak and ineffective.” The Ugandan army, which had been searching for Kony in nieghboring countries, has called off the campaign.

 

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Further information:

• Stop hunting Kony: Ugandan militants end the mission in Central Africa against the LRA Leader (Fides)