Ugandan rebel group threatens expanded violence in Darfur
October 14, 2010
The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), the armed group that has waged a campaign of terror and human-rights violations beginning in northern Uganda and spreading through central Africa, has now set its sights on the already troubled Darfur province of Sudan, an African archbishop has warned.
Archbishop Juan José Aguirre Muños of Bangassou in the Central African Republic told the Fides news service that LRA troops have attacked towns in his country, and now are headed north toward the uncontrolled border of Sudan. The LRA has long been involved in skirmishes in southern Sudan, near its original stronghold in northern Uganda. The move westward into Darfur could exacerbate the bloodshed that already plagues the province.
The LRA, which was originally regarded as a rebel group in Uganda, is led by Joseph Kony, who will face multiple human-rights charges before an international court if and when he is apprehended.
Bishop Muños reported that the LRA troops headed toward Darfur include a number of child soldiers. The group has made a practice of kidnapping children from the towns it raids and pressing them into service in combat.
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