Ugandan military on alert after rebel group attacks in DR Congo

The Ugandan military on Thursday said it is on high alert to deal with any cross border incursions by the rebel group, Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) currently causing havoc in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).

Maj. Ronald Kakurungu, the second division army spokesperson based in western Ugandan told Xinhua by telephone that the military is ready to deal with the rebel group if it crosses the border into Uganda.

"The ADF know we are here. We are on standby and doing everything possible along our common borders with DR Congo to make sure they don't cross into Uganda and cause havoc," he said. He added the Ugandan troops gave them a big blow in the Rwenzori region. "If they dare to come back, we are equal and up to the task. We shall deal with them in the best language they understand. They know it."

The ADF have continued to commit atrocities and human rights abuses in eastern DR Congo despite the Congolese military hunting them.

At least five people were beheaded in a machete attack this week in Mbau area, about 30km from Beni town, North Kivu Province. The local authorities and humanitarian agencies blamed it on ADF.

The ADF formed in the mid-1990s in the Ruwenzori mountain range in western Uganda is believed to have killed more than 260 people in the final three months of last year in eastern DR Congo, mostly using knives and machetes.