Uganda detains 2,000 opposition supporters, kills 30 after disputed election, army chief claims

Uganda’s military chief said on Friday that authorities had detained 2,000 opposition supporters, killed 30, and were hunting for more following a disputed presidential election in which his father, Yoweri Museveni, won a seventh term.

The elder Museveni, 81, has led the East African nation for nearly four decades. He was declared to have resoundingly defeated Bobi Wine, leader of the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), in the January 15 vote, held during an internet blackout.

Wine, a former musician whose legal name is Robert Kyagulanyi, rejected the result, alleging widespread irregularities including ballot stuffing, and went into hiding.

ARMY CHIEF CONDEMNS OPPOSITION ‘TERRORISTS’

In a series of overnight social media posts, military chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba, Museveni’s son, gave the first details of the arrests and killings of NUP supporters, describing them as hooligans and terrorists.

“So far we have killed 30 NUP terrorists,” Kainerugaba said on X, without explaining the circumstances of the deaths. “Most NUP terrorist leaders are in hiding. We shall get them all,” he said in another post.

The government has accused Wine’s supporters of violence during the election while the opposition says its members were attacked by security forces. Reuters has not been able to authenticate the allegations.

A police spokesperson declined to give any further comment on the situation. Military spokesperson Chris Magezi could not be reached for comment.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern on Thursday over the arrests and violence involving opposition figures and supporters.

“He (the Secretary General) notes the importance of restraint by all actors and respect for the rule of law and Uganda’s international human rights obligations,” his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

Wine has alleged that hundreds of his supporters have been illegally detained in recent months for their political affiliation, and accused authorities of intimidation.

Uganda’s opposition parties and rights activists say some of those arrested are held in unofficial detention centres where some are tortured.

The crackdown intensified with the detention of Muwanga Kivumbi, a lawmaker and Wine’s deputy in the NUP, on Thursday. Two other senior NUP figures have been reported missing for days.

On Friday, Kivumbi appeared in court in Butambala to be charged with terrorism. He was remanded in custody until February 3, the rights group Agora Discourse said in a post on X. It did not say how Kivumbi had pleaded and the identity of HIS lawyer was unclear.

Wine, 43, has said he fled his residence after a raid by security personnel shortly after the election.

Museveni is widely believed to be grooming Kainerugaba, who has expressed presidential ambitions, as his successor.