KAMPALA – The UN Security Council has received a report on the joint operations by the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and Forces Armees de la Republique du Congo (FARDC) in eastern DR Congo.
The Security Council brief about joint operations against the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) was made by the head of the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), Bintou Keita.
“The MONUSCO chief said she took note of DR Congo’s sovereign decision to initiate joint military operations with Uganda in North Kivu and Ituri before the UN Security Council on Monday, December 6.
She also stressed the need to allow MONUSCO to continue supporting the Congolese army and urged Uganda and DR Congo to set up co-operations to ensure safety of the blue helmets,” a top diplomat told our reporters.
On November 30, UPDF and FARDC forces launched joint operations against ADF, specifically shelling four terrorist bases – Kambi Ya Yua, Tondoli, Belu 1 and Belu 2 – in eastern DR Congo.
The bombardments forced ADF remnants to re-locate to nearby forests.
To pursue the terrorists, the joint forces mounted a search and control operation of the bombed territories.
From the time UPDF and FARDC launched the joint operations, MONUSCO forces have appealed for a joint mechanism that incorporates them in the operation to enable them continue supporting the FARDC forces in the protection of civilians and neutralisation of armed groups that are currently operating in eastern Congo.
UN Security Council
In her brief to the UN Security Council on Monday, Keita said the mechanisms are being set up.
“To this end, on December 2, the force commander of MONUSCO went to Kampala to define with the authorities the practical modalities of this tripartite co-ordination, which will cover, among other things, aspects related to the security of UN’s aviation, protection of forces participating in operations and humanitarian access to affected populations,” Keita told UN Security Council officials.
The UN Security Council is composed of 15 member states. China, France, Russia, the UK and US are permanent members with veto powers, while the 10 other member states are not permanent and serve for two years on the Security Council upon election by the UN General Assembly.
The current 10 non-permanent members include Estonia, India, Ireland, Mexico, Niger, Norway, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia, Viet-Nam and Kenya, which many view as the country that caters for the interests of the East African Community (EAC) on the council.
Last week, the commander of MONUSCO troops in DR Congo, Lt. Gen. Marcos de sa’Affonso da Costa, held a meeting with the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Wilson Mbadi Mbasu, in Kampala over the joint deployment in eastern Congo.
The two officers agreed on the need for cross-border collaboration and information exchange if terrorism is to be defeated.
During the meeting, the MONUSCO chief also expressed no objection to the ongoing joint operations by UPDF and FARDC against ADF in eastern Congo.
In her brief to the Security Council on Monday, Keita said the MONUSCO troop commander, de sa’Affonso da Costa, will this week hold a similar meeting with FARDC top military chiefs on similar issues that shaped the interaction with the UPDF military chiefs in Kampala.
“I would also like to stress that MONUSCO, within the framework of its mandate, will continue to monitor and report any possible human rights violations committed on Congolese territory,” Keita said in her brief to the UN Security Council.
UPDF officials said they used drone technology to spy on ADF before air strikes and artillery fire was shelled onto the four ADF camps.
The deployment of such drone technology to identify the enemy target, military sources said, enabled air strikes and artillery fire to hit the target without injuring any civilian.
Community sensitisation
As the Shujaa (bravery) operation enters day 10, UPDF troops that have since set up base at Mukakati in eastern DR Congo have joined FARDC forces on a sensitisation drive of local communities about terrorism, among others things.
“UPDF troops together with FARDC have for the last two days been occupied with community engagement programmes to bridge the gap left after successful launch of “Operation Shujaa” in DR Congo,” the UPDF spokesperson, Brig. Flavia Byekwaso, said.
New ADF bases
On Tuesday, sources said following last week’s bombing of the four ADF camps, the terrorists have since moved from North Kivu in eastern Congo and relocated to Mambasa and Irumu territories in Ituri Province.
“Following the bombing of their camps last week, they are said to have now formed small groups of around 40 combatants who operate on different axes – Halungupa, Lume, Bashu, Mwenda, Kainama and Mamove, to carry out attacks to obtain supplies and infiltrate large towns to obtain information,” sources said.
According to UN sources, Musa Baluku aka Seka, is currently not in any base and cannot be traced.
“Baluku, the current leader of the ADF, does not have a fixed camp right now,” a source said, adding that if he escaped the bombings last week, he could be hiding in Beni and relying on ADF networks there to avoid detection by the joint UPDF and FARDC operation forces.
On Tuesday, the spokesperson of the joint operation, Peter Mugisha, said joint strides had been registered, especially the intended mission of flushing out ADF from eastern Congo, adding that UPDF and FARDC continue to pursue the remnants wherever they are.
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