Three soldiers killed in Uganda by angry mob

Police in Uganda on Sunday said three soldiers were lynched by an angry mob near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo after being accused of being criminals by locals.

Local official, Peter Debele told AFP that ‘‘investigations are underway to establish the circumstances under which they were killed”.

He added that “three firearms were recovered at the scene of the attack and eight people were arrested in connection with the killing of the soldiers”.

According to him, the soldiers were arrested about 8 km from their posts by residents for “interrogation. He said they handed over the firearms, but the crowd lynched them claiming they had come to steal from them.

Debele also said, the soldiers were attached to an army unit guarding the Ugandan border post at Vurra.

Ugandan police spokeswoman for the region, Josephine Angucia, told AFP that among the dead soldiers was a unit commander attached to the border post, Corporal Julius Kobum.

“We urge the people not to do themselves justice every time they face a problem, it should have reported the incident to the police,” she added.

The region between Uganda and DR Congo is experiencing high levels of crime due to the porosity of the border, crossed by armed groups to steal and attack locals.

Earlier this year, the government banned civilians from wearing camouflage uniforms because of the number of criminals putting on military uniforms.

AFP