From: Biniam Haile \(SWE\) (eritrea.lave@comhem.se)
Date: Sun Jul 12 2009 - 22:11:36 EDT
5 UPDF killed in Somalia
Written by OUR REPORTERS
Sunday, 14 June 2009 17:16
Five UPDF soldiers have been killed and nine are nursing injuries in
Somalia after insurgents recently sneaked into their camp near State
House in Mogadishu and opened fire.The soldiers were killed about 11
days ago. A sixth soldier was killed at the end of May, just about three
days before this deadly attack. Six of his colleagues got injured. The
Observer is yet to establish the identities of the dead and injured
soldiers because the Army hasn't issued an official statement about the
incident.
The latest incidents bring to 12 the number of known Ugandans killed in
Somalia since the UPDF flew to the lawless country in March 2007 to
protect the transition government. About 15 soldiers are also known to
have been injured in that country. State House sources have told The
Observer that news of the incident, which occurred on June 2, was first
conveyed to the Commander of the Land Forces, Lt. Gen. Edward Katumba
Wamala, the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Aronda Nyakairima, and the
Commander-in-Chief, Gen. Yoweri Museveni. The commander of the
originally 1,700 UPDF soldiers in Somalia, Maj. Gen. Francis Okello,
broke the news of this tragedy to the military leadership, according to
our State House sources.
The soldiers were killed at about 10p.m. local time by insurgents
belonging to the newly created Al-Shabaab, which is fighting to remove
the government of Sheikh Sharif Ahmed. Al-Shabaab fighters are the
successors to the Union of Islamic Courts, which Sheik Sharif led as a
political leader before it was ousted by Ethiopia in 2006. Ugandan
troops went to Somalia to guard the government of Abdullahi Yusuf who
was battling the Islamic Courts under Sheik Sharif. But President Yusuf
resigned in December last year and was replaced by Sheik Sharif after
being elected by a new transitional Parliament.
It was hoped that since he had been the leader of the insurgents, he
would be able to stop them, but instead they have re-organised under a
new name Al-Shabaab to fight him instead.
DEADLY ATTACK
According to our sources, an unknown number of insurgents raided the
UPDF base at Hanale and killed four soldiers. They also injured six
others. The insurgents captured another UPDF soldier, but later killed
him and abandoned his body. After killing him they ran away with his
SMG, in addition to two other guns they had already captured from the
UPDF. Three other UPDF soldiers were injured by friendly fire after
their colleague, now under arrest, panicked and fired his anti-aircraft
gun in the process.
This appears to have been the most deadly attack against Ugandan
soldiers who are in Somalia on a peace mission under the auspices
African Union. Burundi is the only other African country to have offered
peacekeepers.
Army Spokesman, Maj. Felix Kulayigye, however denied that UPDF lost any
soldiers in the month of June.
"We are very okay," he said, when contacted for comment, adding that he
didn't have off-cuff the actual figures of UPDF soldiers that have
perished since the mission started. On January 5, insurgents who have
intensified their fight against the Somali government killed a UPDF
soldier on patrol and injured another. The spokesman for AMISON, as the
mission is called, Maj. Ba-Hoku Barigye, issued a statement within 24
hours of the killing of that soldier in January.
"This morning at about 7:45a.m., an AMISOM convoy was hit by an
Improvised Explosive Device adjacent to the offices of immigration on
K4-Airport road. The convoy was on routine duties of mine-sweeping the
street. As a result of the explosion, one soldier was killed, while
another was injured. Both are from the Ugandan contingent," Barigye
said. However, this time the Army has remained tightlipped.
Nevertheless our information is that the insurgents, after killing UPDF
soldiers, engaged government forces in a fierce battle in which they
even temporarily seized the main Police station in Yaqhad district.
DESERTING
The latest killing of five soldiers comes hot on the heels of some
desertions caused by the relentless and fierce fighting mounted by the
Al-Shabaab fighters.
Katumba Wamala is understood to have expressed his concern, after
visiting Somalia recently and learning that some soldiers had
inexplicably abandoned their stations.
Some of the deserting soldiers seek medical leave to fly to Nairobi and
Uganda for treatment, but end up disappearing thereafter. Others simply
vanish. The UPDF leadership is angry that some of the deserters have
continued drawing allowances as though they are still part of the AMISON
operation. Katumba Wamala has now directed that anybody who is not in
Somalia for 21 days should be struck off the list.
On desertions, again Maj. Kulayigye said no cases had been reported.
"That is enemy propaganda. How can anybody dessert when they are earning
dollars? We don't have desertions. It is all enemy action," he said.
newseditor@observer.ugThis e-mail address is being protected from
spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Three other UPDF soldiers were injured by friendly fire after their
colleague, now under arrest, panicked and fired his anti-aircraft gun in
the process.
http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content
<http://www.observer.ug/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3827&I
temid=59> &task=view&id=3827&Itemid=59
<http://www.observer.ug/images/stories/army.jpg>
----[This List to be used for Eritrea Related News Only]----
