COIN case: LRA Lords Resistance Army

[Jedburgh]

IPI, 25 Nov 09: From Uganda to the Congo and Beyond: Pursuing the Lord's Resistance Army

In 2008, the Ugandan military pursued the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a northern Ugandan rebel group, into neighboring Congo during the military incursion known as “Operation Lightning Thunder.” This paper provides the historical context for this pursuit, including the historical background of the northern Uganda war that produced the LRA, and an analysis of the Juba peace process that began in 2006 and unraveled over the course of 2008.

The paper also examines the three months of “Operation Lightning Thunder,” focusing on official statements, press and NGO reports, and a newsmagazine report that first appeared in June 2009 challenging the official Ugandan version of events.

Finally, the paper explores what might come next that could contribute to peace and stability in northern Uganda and the region as a whole.

[M-A Lagrange]

Congo LRA Rebels Threaten Attacks During Christmas
http://www.easybourse.com/bourse/act...s-group-775146

UN Congo force put on alert against LRA rebel threat – AfricaTimesNews
The U.N. peacekeeping force in Congo has put its soldiers on high alert after reports that Ugandan rebels are threatening to carry out mass killings of the kind they conducted last Christmas, a spokesman said on Friday.
Ugandan Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels, who murdered over 800 civilians around Christmas and early January last year, have threatened a fresh wave of attacks despite a year of multi-national military operations against them, analysts warn.
“We are taking things seriously,” said Kevin Kennedy, head of public information for the U.N.’s Congo peacekeeping mission. Kennedy said information about the threats by the rebels had been passed on by aid workers in recent days and weeks.

Xmass, bloody Xmass… says the song

[Steve the Planner]

James Message:

"Visibility is all about "Brought to you by <insert your favourite NGO>". Objective-focused IO is not happening, leaving government looking incompetent. To those who understand recovery, reintegration, and stabilization; making government look incompetent - directly or indirectly - is plain wrong.

Loads of the usual infrastructure-for-all, HIV, GBV, quick-fix programmes that are basically paliative. Most of the NGOs implement-to-form virtually ignoring what is an incredibly dynamic socio-cultural, political, and trauma-riven context.

It will take a lot more imagination, effort, and resources than this to shift Uganda from a 'between-conflict context' to a 'post-conflict context'."

Gee, could we insert XXXX for Uganda and have this story be universal.

[M-A Lagrange]

FARDC captures 6 LRA rebels in Duru:
Capt Alex Ochen was capture with 5 others by the FARDC on 18 and 20 December 2009.
full article (in french): http://www.digitalcongo.net/article/63531

Some good news in fact.

[carl]

The Ugandan Army reports that Bok Abudema was killed recently by the UPDF in the Central African Republic.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8437886.stm

This seems another in a slow but steady stream of LRA commanders being killed or captured. It is interesting they appear to be going down alone or with only one or two followers. Perhaps the UPDF has figured out what to do and is doing it.

[davidbfpo]

I caught this BBC radio report AM today and it is bad: http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today...00/8444884.stm

Item is at 0743hrs and is four minutes long:

Ritual killings of children in Uganda may be more common than previously thought, a BBC investigation has found. Tim Whewell reports from northern Uganda.

I hope this is available beyond the UK.

[davidbfpo]

The earlier BBC item featured Thursday night on BBC Newsnight: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode...ht_07_01_2010/ and since there are often problems with viewing - this item has text and an IPOD radio broadcast:http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programme...ht/8441813.stm

Cross-reference made on another thread where issue has appeared, from Post No.22 onwards, amidst an exchange:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...?t=2038&page=2