Rebels attack Uganda towns and take girls

Published on 15/10/2010 21:20

GIRLS as young as six have been kidnapped in Uganda by one of Africa's most vicious rebel groups.

The Lord's Resistance Army looted property and torched shops in the northern township of Birao, said the United Nations.

The UN's refugee agency has expressed deep concern about the latest in a string of similar incidents and the resulting displacement of civilians.

Officials said it was not yet known exactly how many girls had been abducted due to the remote locations involved. The UN said the group's terror campaign has intensified since September with attacks in Central African Republic, Congo and southern Sudan.

Six attacks and three ambushes have been carried out in north-east Congo in the past few weeks.

In the village of Nambiongo, 21 people were killed and 2,500 displaced. In southern Sudan, the LRA attacked the villages of Ribodo and Nahua in Western Equatoria State, killing eight people and displacing another 2,600.

In total, the rebel group has carried out more than 240 deadly attacks this year, killing at least 344 people.

A spokesman for the UN said: "Insecurity and poor infrastructure hinder assessment of needs and delivery of aid to affected communities, many of whose members are traumatised and too scared to return to their farms to cultivate their land.

"As you can imagine, this means they will continue to depend on outside help for the foreseeable future."

The LRA emerged in 1998 in northern Uganda as a rebel movement dedicated to overthrowing the government. It draws support mainly from the acholi tribe and aims to establish a radical Christian nation based on the Ten Commandments.

It is now infamous for regional atrocities against civilians and its leaders are wanted for war crimes.