By Dennis Otim – 2^nd-8^th Aug 2010

Joseph Kony’s notorious Lord’s Resistance Army [LRA] rebels have killed several UPDF soldiers and wounded many more in clashes that took place between the two armies in the Central African Republic [CAR] recently.

The LRA were flashed out of Garamba forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo [DRC] in a joint military offensive that was code named “Operation Lightening Thunder” that brought together troops from Uganda, DRC, and Sudan.  That operation came after the elusive LRA leader Joseph Kony failed to turn up for the signing ceremony of the Juba Peace Accord between the government of Uganda and the LRA.

One of the dead UPDF soldiers has been identified as Bosco Nyeko from Akara Parish, Mucwini Sub-County in Kitgum District.  A close relative of the fallen UPDF soldier confirmed the death to Uganda Correspondent via email.“Yes it’s true.  We got information from the village that UPDF soldiers had returned Bosco’s remains for burial this week.  They told our relatives in the village that Bosco and a few of his colleagues had been killed in battle against the LRA in Central African Republic.  Bosco was his mother’s only child.  He will be dearly missed”; said the relative.

He further added that the family is very bitter that the UPDF made no attempt whatsoever to contact Bosco’s parents and relatives in advance before storming the deceased’s home with the body.  As a result, this relative said, “…Bosco’s mother never got the opportunity to bury her only child and that is quite simply unforgivable.  It is also unforgivable that Museveni continues to send innocent men and women to die in senseless wars of aggression in far off places and then smuggle their bodies quietly back into Uganda for burial so as to avoid causing public alarm”.

Uganda Correspondent has independently established that the fallen soldier had for a long time served as a personal escort to a notorious UPDF officer famously known as “Okot Wii Lit”.  Together, they had served in different parts of Uganda as well as in the war theatres of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.

Efforts to establish the identities of the other fallen UPDF officers have been futile as contact with the UPDF spokesman Lt. Col. Felix Kulaigye could not be established before Uganda Correspondent went to press.