Uganda’s Allied Democratic Forces Poses Threat to East and Central Africa

Highlight

Democratic Republic of Congo authorities reported on Tuesday 8th September on the killing of seven civilians near Mbau in the northern sector of the troubled North Kivu province by Uganda’s Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) militants.

The ADF has been accused of killing more than 400 villagers over the last 10 months, most of who were slaughtered with machetes and farm implements.

The rebel group which sprang in Uganda but now operates in DRC continues to pose a threat in East and Central Africa especially now that they have significant links with the Al Shabaab.

Threat by ADF to Uganda and Neighbors

The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) terror group has crippled the Democratic Republic of Congo for decades after they were driven out of their original bases in Uganda.

ADF militants have carried out a spate of attacks even as they continue to face offensives from a regional force, with Uganda on the front line in contributing troops. In only 10 months, the terror group has been accused of killing more than 400 villagers in DRC’s remote villages.

Other attacks in 2015 include the Thursday 20th August killing of five people by Ugandan Allied Democratic Forces rebels near the DRC’s eastern city of Kamango.

The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) is a rebel group opposed to the Ugandan government and is considered a terrorist organization. The ADF was formed in 1996 by puritanical Muslim Ugandans who moved as Muslim crusaders, inciting civilians against the Ugandan government on allegations of segregation.

Forecast

ADF continues to pose a great security threat to DRC, Uganda and other countries in east and central Africa especially now that they have close connections with the Al Shabaab which happens to be an affiliate to a global terrorist network, the Al Qaeda.

Intelligence summaries indicate the danger in neglecting the threat posed by ADF. This is a terrorist group that is committed to a course in which they expand radical Islam- Salafism in East Africa just as the Harakat Al Shabaab Al Mujahideen (Al Shabaab). They use radical approaches to force people into Islam.