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Uganda twin bombings blamed on IS-linked group

Tuesday, November 16th, 2021 21:23 | By
The terror attack in Kampala, Uganda.PHOTO/COURTESY.

Three people died and 33 others injured in twin suicide bombings targeting Uganda’s capital, Kampala, yesterday, police said.

Police blamed a “domestic terror group” linked to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) for the attacks. An armed group active in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the ADF, has been linked to the Islamic State by Washington and blamed for a string of recent attacks in Uganda.

Two suicide bombers on motorbikes -- disguised as local “boda boda” operators -- detonated a device near the entrance to parliament, killing a passerby, while a third attacker targeted a checkpoint near the central police station, leaving two people dead, police spokesman Fred Enanga said.

The explosions in the central business district occurred within minutes of each other, shortly after 10am, and left “bodies shattered and scattered” across the sites, Enanga said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Enanga told reporters: “The indications are that this is a domestic terror group linked to ADF.”

Police foiled a third attack, recovering an improvised explosive device at the home of an alleged suicide bomber, who was shot and injured, and were in pursuit of other members of the group, Enanga added.

Explosion near the police station shattered windows while the one near the entrance to parliament set cars parked nearby on fire, Assistant Inspector General of police Edward Ochom said earlier.

Attacks follow two blasts last month -- a bus explosion near Kampala that wounded many people and a bombing at a roadside eatery in the capital that killed one woman. Police said last month both those explosions were connected and were carried out by ADF.  Uganda has also blamed the group for a foiled bomb attack in August on the funeral of an army commander, who led a major offensive against Al Shabaab militants in Somalia.

Tight security

Salim Uhuru, mayor of Kampala Central, said he was near the police station when he heard the blast. 

“It was so loud. I ran towards the police station and saw one policeman I know dead on the ground. His body was scattered like mincemeat,” Uhuru said. 

Kyle Spencer, the executive director of Uganda’s Internet Exchange Point, said the explosions had sparked panic among many people nearby. “The road to Parliament is closed off. There are people just crying. Everyone else is just trying to get away from these areas,” he said.

“Everybody is evacuating office buildings and the buildings are locking up and not letting anybody inside.”

Parliament cancelled its Tuesday session, asking members to avoid the area “as security forces are working hard to restore order”. The premises were put under tight security, with heavily armed soldiers securing the area as forensics officers in white overalls inspected the blast site for clues.

Opposition leader Bobi Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, said he was “very sad” about the bombings. 

“We should stand strong with each other in such a tough time,” the popstar-turned-politician said in a statement.

Ugandan police last month arrested a number of alleged ADF operatives and warned that extremists were believed to be plotting a new attack on “major installations”.  “Today’s breakthrough attacks show that we still need to do more, to pre-empt, penetrate and prevent deadly attacks by domestic extremists in the days to come,” Enanga said.

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