Senior ADF commander killed in Uganda, DR Congo joint military operation

KAMPALA, July 9 (Xinhua)

The Ugandan military on Sunday said it has killed a senior commander of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels and three of his fighters in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) in a joint operation with the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC) killed Lubangakane, one of the most senior ADF commanders in Mwalika valley, North Kivu province in the eastern DRC, the military said in a statement issued here.

At least two guns including a PMK Machine gun and one sub machine gun, were recovered from the rebels.

"My forces under Makindye battalion, had a contact early this [Sunday] morning and Lubangakane, a dare devil commander of the ADF did not survive," said Maj. Gen. Dick Olum, the overall Commander of the joint operation, dubbed "Shujaa", according to the military statement.

"We are not relenting on our mission of degrading ADF," he said. Olum who has relocated his tactical headquarters to Kasindi in North Kivu said UPDF troops have so far recovered 10 weapons from the ADF in the last three weeks.

The statement said the ADF rebels have been on the receiving end for the last three weeks following the group's attack in Lhubiriha Secondary School, about two kilometers from the DRC border.

Ugandan troops, together with their DRC counterparts, have been jointly fighting the rebel group since November 2022.

The ADF, also a branch of the Islamic State in central Africa, is blamed for causing havoc and mounting attacks in North Kivu and Ituri provinces in eastern DRC.

Courtesy ; Xinhua