At least 25 killed in attack on school in Uganda
NBCJun 09, 2023
The Facts
At least 41 people, including 38 students, were killed and eight others critically injured after militants suspected of belonging to IS-linked extremist group the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) attacked a school in western Uganda, state authorities said Saturday.
Five assailants reportedly attacked the Lhubiriha secondary school in Mpondwe, near the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) border, Friday night. Officials stated the militants set fire to a dormitory and hacked students to death with machetes.
The Spin
Establishment-critical narrative
Friday's brutal attack shows the ADF is nowhere near defeated, as attacks on civilian targets continue to take place despite the heavy military and artillery presence along the border. The ADF's growing terror activities in the region reflect the global community's collective failure to dismantle the emboldened militant network, and raise questions surrounding the political and international aid benefits African leaders may be getting from the alleged fight against terrorism.
Pro-establishment narrative
The US and international community are doing all they can to counter the ADF, working closely with the DRC to address terrorist threats. However, with over 45 separate non-state armed groups — including the ADF — operating in the DRC province of North Kivu alone, and with the group's structure nearly impossible to discern and size in constant flux, defeating the insurgents is a task that will require sustained and systemic international support, while recognizing that the group is sadly but one small component of the much larger conflict in eastern DRC.