Security experts on Tuesday noted that the decision by the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) to attack the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) bases in the Democratic Republic of Congo was the best and was in the interest of Uganda’s security.

They, however, warned that the decision would most likely lead to increased domestic terror attacks as the ADF seek to fight back.

Charles Rwomushana, a former intelligence operative, said the decision by President Yoweri Museveni to direct the UPDF to attack ADF was the best.

“He is now facing the moment of truth because the official statement of the army says the Uganda People’s Defence Forces has used air and artillery against the ADF camps.

In other words, you are admitting that the enemy has camps. He is an encamped enemy and has a defended area, like State House Entebbe where you have the outskirts and Police patrols. You can’t simply come with a force and attack.

Air and artillery are done on an encamped enemy who is heavily fortified,” Rwomushana said.

He noted that the attacks were prompted by the ADF’s continued attacks in Uganda, even though they had bases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“The implication is that there is going to be increased activity of insurgency in Uganda. If there are camps that you have seen in Uganda and you want to attack them, you attack their rear so that you stop reinforcement to these camps.

If Museveni has seen the arrowhead of that insurgency in Mbarara or towards Luweero, you don’t start attacking the ones of Mbarara and Luweero without building capacity to stop the main base from supplying the arrowheads,” he added.

Rwomushana noted that Museveni was trying to deal with the guerillas inside Uganda through their rear base. He also said the ADF had two options.

“Either surrender or negotiate. What we are now dealing with is war and this war has dynamics and it depends on how you look at things.

There is the war of the ordinary person and this simply means you go there and bombard and leave, but then there is war of someone knowing what he is fighting,” he said.

Rwomushana said the attack on the ADF is similar to the attack by the Ethiopian government on the Tigrayan rebels.

“The Ethiopian security had already seen that the Tigrayan rebels had built some war chest, so they attacked to pre-empt.

“Now Museveni is attacking the ADF to pre-empt and see whether any neighbouring country is involved in arming the ADF, or he could be attacking to pre-empt and stop supply of arms to ADF by some neighbouring countries.”

Rwomushana noted that even with the attacks, the government’s main focus should now be on the internal defence of its major towns and populations, noting they were now even more vulnerable.

The former External Security Organisation director general, David Pulkol, also supported the move, but urged the government to intensify the crackdown on the domestic cells too.

The launch of the joint air and artillery strikes on ADF operational bases in Nobili, Kamango and Watalinga on Tuesday came against the backdrop of terror attacks in Kampala, where several people have lost lives in the past one month.

On Tuesday, November 16, two twin bombs went off in Kampala, one at the Central Police Station and another at Parliament Avenue, killing seven people and injuring several others.

An earlier attack happened at a pork joint in Komamboga, a Kampala suburb, killing a waitress, while another suicide bomber died on a Bushenyi-bound bus.

Only the suicide bomber died in the bus attack.

The Police has blamed these attacks on the ADF and went ahead to hunt for the group’s agents in Kampala, shooting dead some suspects and arresting several others.

The joint air and artillery strikes on ADF bases in Nobili, Kamango and Watalinga came against the backdrop of terror attacks in Kampala.