COIN case: LRA Lords Resistance Army

[davidbfpo]

the story of the man as I know it, and what his defection might mean to the future of the LRA. More so than Joseph Kony, the founder and leader of the LRA, Ongwen is sadly typical of the LRA rank and file. His example refutes the erroneous but morally and sometimes legally convenient definitions of LRA members as either helpless victims or violent perpetrators. Abducted as a child, indoctrinated and forced into committing unspeakable acts before he had even hit puberty, Ongwen is clearly a victim, but he is also a perpetrator.

Which ends with:

The only thing clear from Ongwen’s surrender is that the LRA crisis is still not over.

Link:http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...child-soldier/

[davidbfpo]

A senior militia commander wanted for war crimes has been handed over to Ugandan troops in the Central African Republic (CAR), the US says.

Rebels in the CAR said he was captured but US officials say he defected.
Uganda has said he will face trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-30810501

[davidbfpo]

Pending an official statement by Uganda the NYT reports:

The bullet-scarred remains of the No. 2 commander in the Lord’s Resistance Army, the guerrilla group that once terrorized central Africa, have been positively identified after having been exhumed three months ago in a Uganda-led military expedition, a person involved in the recovery operation said Monday.....only Mr. Kony, a warlord and self-described prophet, remains at large.

Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/07/wo...n-uganda.html?

[davidbfpo]

The small US mission has attracted a WaPo report, with a lurid headline and these two opening passages:

As their mission stretches into a fifth year, however, U.S. troops have turned to some unsavory partners to help find Kony’s trail. Working from a new bush camp in the Central African Republic, U.S. forces have begun working closely with Muslim rebels — known as Seleka — who toppled the central government two years ago and triggered a still-raging sectarian war with a campaign of mass rapes and executions. The Pentagon had not previously disclosed that it is cooperating with Seleka and obtaining intelligence from the rebels. The arrangement has made some U.S. troops uncomfortable.

As previous posts from January 2015 show this cooperation is hardly new.

Link:https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...19_story.html?

[davidbfpo]

A short article, no doubt part of the publisher's advertising; caveat aside maybe it helps to explain:http://www.theguardian.com/world/201...memoir-extract

[davidbfpo]

Perhaps one day more will be said:

A senior commander with the rebel group Lord's Resistance Army has defected to villagers in Central African Republic, the U.S. Africa Command said Friday. The rebel commander defected near the community of Pangbayanga, and is being debriefed in the country by the African Union Regional Task Force and U.S. forces, the command said. No further details were given.

Link:http://bigstory.ap.org/urn:publicid:...7bd89be858d2cf

[davidbfpo]

The pressure groups have told at least this Jo'burg-based journalist the LRA are active once more:

Rebels from the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) have dramatically escalated their attacks, abducting more than 200 people - including 54 children - in the first two months of this year. The LRA carried out twice as many raids in January and February alone as during the whole of 2015, according to "LRA Crisis Tracker".....The LRA had been reduced to as few as 120 fighters and 100 accompanying women and children.

Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...f-attacks.html