Sudan accuses Uganda of backing rebel groups
Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi insists the Khartoum government supports LRA. PHOTO BY faiswal kasirye
What you need to know:
War of words. Uganda instead claims Khartoum is supporting LRA but the latter says the allegations are diversionary.
Kampala.
Sudan has accused Uganda of interfering with its internal affairs by supporting Sudanese rebel groups a week after Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi said the Khartoum government had resumed supporting Lord’s Resistance Army rebels.
A statement issued by the Sudanese ambassador in Kampala stated that the Khartoum government had petitioned the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the regional intergovernmental body of International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) over Uganda’s alleged support to groups hostile to the Sudan government.
“The ICGLR summit of Nairobi (2013) discussed Sudan’s complaint against Uganda and the OIC has been informed of that. The summit decided to forward the complaint to the ministers of defence of the ICGLR as a preliminary step to forward it once again to the summit,” Amb Kamal Ali Osman said.
Sudan accuses Uganda of supporting Sudan Revolutionary Front, an alliance of rebel groups.
However, Mr Mbabazi in a phone interview on Tuesday, said Sudan was” hiding” behind the petition to OIC and ICGLR to conceal the support it has been giving to the LRA and its leader Joseph Kony, adding that Uganda had petitioned the OIC over the same issue.
“There is nothing new they are saying. What I raised was that they are trying to hide the fact that they support Kony and they continue to support LRA,” he said.
However, Sudan said Mr Mbabazi’s allegations were diversionary.
“...It is no longer meaningful to repeat false accusations against Sudan in the face of the documented and detailed information on the Uganda’s continued support for the armed Sudanese rebel movements,” a statement reads.
Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary James Mugume last week said the diplomatic spat was being handled.
