UGANDA DENIES INVOLVEMENT IN KILLING OF SOUTH SUDAN’S ATHOR

FILE - Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni reacts during a

news conference at the Nakasero State Lodge in the capital

Kampala, October 16, 2011 (Reuters)

The Ugandan government on Thursday denied allegations leveled by a rebel group in South Sudan that it was involved in the killing of its leader on Monday by the Sudan people Liberation Army (SPLA).

The South Sudan Vice president Riek Machar said on Tuesday that SPLA shot General George Athor in Central Equatoria state along with one of his aides on a mission to recruit people to join his movement.

Athor defected from the SPLA in 2010 following his loss in the gubernatorial elections in Jonglei state.

The South Sudan’s Democratic Movement/Army (SSDM/A) issued a statement in response to its leader’s death claiming that Uganda president Yoweri Musevini conspired against Athor.

“George Athor was killed by Ugandans. He left from his headquarters on Saturday with Ugandan plane to meet President Museveni to discuss how Uganda could assist the people of South Sudan to resolve the ongoing conflict with Juba’s regime. George Athor left with Major Thomas Duoth Makuach (American citizen), who was his assistant for Kampala. He arrived in Kampala at 2 pm Saturday afternoon. He was scheduled to meet President Museveni on Sunday” said the statement sent to Sudan Tribune by email that was signed by Maj. Gen. Bapiny Monytuil, Deputy Head of SSDA.

“We talked to Athor and Thomas Duoth when they arrived on Saturday. But we lost contact with them from Sunday onwards until we saw their dead bodies on South Sudan TV. President Museveni killed George Athor. The SSDA and SSLA military High Commands will have emergency meeting tomorrow to devise plans to revenge the killing of Athor. He was killed by Ugandans and Museveni will dearly pay for that. The SSLA and SSDA will teach Museveni a lesson he will never forget in his life”.

Uganda’s Presidential Spokesman Mirundi Tamale told the Kampala-based Daily Monitor by telephone that the accusations leveled by SSDA are “statements of enemies who want to drag the name of the President [Museveni] in their conflict”.

“President Museveni has been involved in many reconciliation efforts across Africa, and does not believe in assassination of enemies”.

“It [the allegation] is not true, said Tamale, “It does not bear any reality to our historical links”. He declined to confirm or deny whether the Musevini-Athor meeting took place on Sunday as stated.

“In any case, he was not fighting Uganda but South Sudan. So why would Uganda kill him?”

The SSDM/A issued a new statement today reiterating their accusations and claiming that Musevini used his peace initiative as a trap for unsuspecting Athor. “Sources within Ugandan intelligent community, who were in contact with members of SSDM/A after the death of Athor, revealed that President Museveni gave order to military officers to assassinate him at 10:20pm on Saturday”.

“The Ugandan military intelligent officers, who were ordered to carry out the plot, waited until George Athor and Thomas Duoth went to bed. Approximately at 1:45 am, on December, 18, armed units busted into the rooms and shot each one of them on the head”.

“After the assassinations were complete, they collected their bodies and took them to a military barrack outside Kampala. On Monday, December, 19, 2011, the bodies of Athor and Thomas Duoth were put in one pickup Toyota and taken to border near Morobo County of South Sudan. The Ugandan military intelligent officers handed them over to the SPLA military intelligent officer, Maj. Gen. Mach Paul. The Ugandans instructed the SPLA to announce in the media that Athor was captured while trying to recruit people in Morobo so that nobody would accuse Uganda of being behind his assassination”.

The rebel movement said that “the assassination of Athor, by a head of state after being officially invited, is the first incident in African continent”.

South Sudan split away from Sudan in July under a peace deal that ended decades of civil war with Khartoum, but the young, oil-producing country has struggled with multiple armed uprisings.

Sudan Tribune 

FORMER CHIBUSA BASIC SCHOOL HEAD BECOMES NEW CHIEF CHABULA OF ABENA MUKULU TRIBE

The Abena mukulu Royal Establishment  ( AMRE ) committee has appointed former Chibusa basic school headmaster Ernest Mwansa Chibesa as new Chief Chabula of abena mukulu tribe of nsombo area in Luwingu district.

ZANIS reports from Luwingu District, today, that Senior Chieftainess Chungu confirmed the development in an interview.

She said that the royal establishment of abena mukulu tribe has decided to appoint Ernest Chibesa as new Chabula after a thoroughly investigations following the family tree to avoid wrangles that other tribes have gone through.

“ It has taken them 22 months for the establishment to identify the new tradition ruler because the committee didn’t want to go through the problems other tribes are facing to appoint their chiefs in their chiefdom, “ she said .

The Chieftainess explained that it was a duty of the royal establishment to identify eligible person to ascend to the thrown and appealed to the family members to accept its decision.

She said new chief Chabula was picked from the three people identified by the royal family members and that their names were forwarded to the royal establishment committee for consideration.

She called on family members to unite and support the newly appointed chief Chabula in order for the area to attain the much needed development.

The newly appointed chief Chabula (Ernest Mwansa Chibesa) is on leave pending retirement from the ministry of education where he worked as a teacher and later promoted to the rank of school headmaster.

He served in many schools before retiring as the school head master at chibusa basic school in chief Katuta’s area about 145km west of Luwingu district in the northern province and about 76km east of Mansa district in Luapula province respectively

Her royal highness appealed to the newly appointed chief Chabula to support the government of the day if the area is to attain the much needed development as people will comparing the ideas of late chief and that of his.

The traditional ruler said government has already embarked on the construction a modern secondary school next the Roman Catholic Church adding the school construction is almost complete.

Chieftainess Chungu said the late chief will be remembered especially when he released over 30 hectares of land to the government for the construction of a secondary school for girls in his area.

And witnessing the appointment of new chief Chabula, District Commissioner Alfred Muonga thanked the community and the family members in the area for exhibiting maturity until the royal establishment committee appointed new chief.

Mr. Muonga said the patriotic front (FP) government remains committed in improving the social welfare of its people by making sure that fertilizers are timely distributed, roads are worked on, health post and schools are constructed in all the six chiefdom in the district.

He said government last month released an additional K100 million for the construction of health post in Mutondo village in Chieftainess Chungu’s area in Lupososhi constituency in the district.

ZANIS

KENYAN HOTELS, MALLS ON ALERT OVER TERROR STRIKE FEARS

File | NATION Security officers screen motorists at Kiembeni

Catholic Church in Kisauni, Mombasa. Police have warned

Al-Shabaab militants may target places of worship, shopping malls

and hotels this festive season.

Churches, hotels and shopping malls in Kenyan are among social places being provided with blanket security in an effort to prevent a terrorist attack this festive season.

Security services are at an unprecedented state of alert amid reports that Al-Shabaab, the Somali terrorist group, has dispatched bomb makers and assassins to eliminate Defence Minister Yusuf Haji and National Assembly Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim.

Interviews with various security officials revealed that a detailed operational plan was sent to commanders of security agencies on Wednesday.

The plan includes a guide to officers on terrorism prevention, detection and how to act in case of an emergency.

New measures have resulted in the security of selected ordinary public places being upgraded, albeit temporarily, to the status known in security parlance as “vital installations.”

Normally, vital installations would, among others, include airports, military barracks, police stations and foreign missions in Kenya.

This means the newly upgraded areas will be provided with the same level of security as the sensitive installations.

The new entrants into this category include some churches, hotels, selected entertainment joints, shopping malls as well as some media houses.

While the Nation could not establish the places that have been upgraded, an officer conversant with the arrangements mentioned a number of entertainment joints which are frequented by foreigners and shopping malls in upmarket city suburbs.

Vital installations are guarded by armed police officers and round-the-clock security surveillance done by teams of specially trained officers, mostly from the General Service Unit. Elite units from different security formations have been put on alert.

The operational plan also provides for joint command centres from which the different security agents would be coordinated in case of an emergency.

Emergency services have been on standby with rescue helicopters, ambulances, hospitals and volunteer services taking part.

Police spokesman Eric Kiraithe said it was normal for State security to be accorded not only in places perceived to be under threat, but also to individuals “who have cause to fear for their well-being.”

“Police protection is always given to any person or even place under threat,” he said.

He added: “The management of such places is usually informed but in some cases it’s not. In such places, access by persons and vehicles must be controlled and surveillance maintained throughout.”

The new measures were put in place as it emerged that Al-Shabaab had entered the country and were targeting two senior government officials from North Eastern Province for elimination.

According to a letter seen by the Nation, those targeted by the Somali insurgents are Mr Haji and Mr Maalim.

A letter from the permanent secretary in charge of Provincial Administration and Internal Security, Mr Francis Kimemia to North Eastern PC James ole Seriani said the Al-Shabaab operatives targeting the two entered the country on December 13.

“We have received information a group of Al-Shabaab operatives were dispatched from Lower Juba area in Somalia to Ijara and Lagdera constituencies on 13.12.11, with a brief to assassinate Minister Yussuf Haji and Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim,” said the letter.

It adds that the militia had also dispatched some unidentified explosives experts from Buale area in Somalia, to attack Habaswein and Elwak markets in Wajir and Mandera, respectively.

“Al-Shabaab appears determined to continue pursuing targets in Kenya. You should continue with security vigilance to deter infiltration and also apprise (sic) the targeted officials of the new and persisting threats,” the letter titled “Situation Report” noted.

Al-Shabaab has, in the recent past, taken its propaganda to social media platforms like Twitter where they post messages threatening to attack both US and Kenyan interests.

On Monday, American officials said they are considering how to respond to Al-Shabaab’s use of Twitter.

The Somali militants have used their recently established Twitter account to boast about their actions and to taunt the Kenyan troops that entered the war-torn country in October.

US officials say they are concerned that Al-Shabaab’s Twitter messages, sent mostly in English, could attract recruits inside the United States.
Several Americans are known to have joined Al-Shabaab, with a few reported to have carried out suicide missions.

US authorities believe they may have legal authority to insist that Twitter, a private company based in San Francisco, close the Al-Shabaab account, which has close to 5,000 followers.

Trigger opposition

But such a move could trigger opposition on the grounds that the US government is violating the right to free speech.

The Obama administration has distanced itself from Kenya’s move into Somalia although it is believed to be supplying Kenyan forces with intelligence assistance.

In Coast, a central command is manned round the clock by officers from all agencies, including the police, military and the National Security Intelligence Service.

The base has detachments in Mombasa, Malindi, Kyunga and on sea where the Navy has taken control beyond the Kenyan waters into Somalia territory.

Besides the police and the military, a number of private security companies in urban centres have also been included in the new plan.

Daily Nation