Kony 'suffering from diabetes, arthritis'

By Vision Reporter

Seven recently-surrendered Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels have said rebel leader Joseph Kony is aging and sickly, and that he is suffering from diabetes and arthritis.

Armed with AK- 47 rifles and 386 rounds of ammunition, the rebels surrendered to the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) at Ngili Ngili, 4km Southwest of Obo, UPDF’s main base in Central African Republic (CAR).

The seven, under the command of Kony’s aide Capt. Alex Okello, popularly known in the bush as ‘Aliciri’, said there were misunderstandings within LRA ranks.

They revealed that Kony has been left with a few fighters, including his sons Salim, 23, and Ali, 21.

Most of the LRA fighters’ morale is said to be low as a result of rampant killings, physical assault, demotions and insults from Kony.

Four of the rebels who surrendered are Ugandans: Alex Okello, 30; Richard Nyeko, 28; Simon Wokorachi, 26 and John Adebisiku, 20.

Jackson Justine, 18 and Elia Marona are South Sudanese, while Mboli Pachili is Congolese.
 

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UPDF senior officers and their American partners pose for a group photo with the defectors at Obo UPDF’s main base in CAR on Thursday. (Credit: UPDF)

The Ugandans claim they were abducted from Gulu, the South Sudanese say they were got from Maridi, Western state, while the Congolese says he was picked from Nyangara in DR Congo.

According to the defectors, this was part of the group that broke away from Kony’s main group in Kafia-King on May 16, 2015. They moved through CAR up to DR Congo, then later back to CAR, where they had to surrender.

They told the UPDF that LRA’s main activities now are hunting elephants for tusks, abduction of young children and women who can easily be indoctrinated into LRA ranks.

Other activities include looting of minerals and fishing. The ivory and minerals are said to be exchanged for guns and ammunitions from Sudanese traders.

The LRA was branded a terrorist group and all its top five commanders indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague.

Since then, many of the LRA commanders have either been killed or surrendered with Kony – the only LRA commander still at large in the central African jungles.

The UPDF is in the central African nation under the umbrella of AU-RTF, which was formed to get rid of the LRA rebels since it had become a regional problem.

The forces are supported by the US special forces.