Uganda detains DR Congo troops

The Ugandan army has detained a group of Congolese soldiers who crossed into the country following recent clashes between The Democratic Republic of Congo's army and deserters, a spokesman said Tuesday.

"There were 15 of them, including a major and they crossed over yesterday," army spokesman Felix Kulayigye said, adding that they had been handed over to the country's refugee agency.

The soldiers in DR Congo army uniforms crossed the border close to the town of Bunagana, where fighting was reported between the Congolese army and recently defected troops, Kulayigye said.

Kulayigye could not however confirm if the troops were among those who had deserted from the Congolese army.

Hundreds of members of the rebel National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), which was integrated into the regular army under a 2009 peace deal, have deserted in recent days over what they call inhumane living conditions and other complaints.

DR Congo President Joseph Kabila flew Monday to Goma, the main city in the volatile Nord Kivu province, although no official reason was given for the visit.

Also in Goma is former CNDP commander Bosco Ntaganda, whose nickname is "Terminator" and who is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of using child soldiers to fight for him in a former militia group.

Pressure has grown on Kabila to arrest Ntaganda after the ICC convicted his former boss Thomas Lubanga of war crimes on March 14 in its first-ever verdict since the court was set up 10 years ago.

After the verdict prosecutors said they would meet with Kabila to ask him to arrest Ntaganda. (AFP)