Armed Rwandan soldier survives lynching in Kabale

A Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) soldier Saturday survived lynching by an angry mob in Butanda Sub County, Kabale District on accusations of trespassing into Ugandan soil while armed.

The soldier only identified as Ndagijimana attached to Alpha Taskforce of 17th Battalion, 501 brigade in Nyamicucu barracks Burera District, was intercepted by locals while on Ugandan soil of Kekubo in Butanda Sub County at around 06.30 PM.

Angry locals accused the soldier of crossing to Uganda with an intention of kidnapping Ugandans to take them to Rwanda for detention.

Mr Godfrey Nyakahuma, the Kabale Resident District Commissioner confirms that Ndagijimana was saved by Mathias Arineitwe, the Butanda Sub County GISO.  

He said that Arineitwe first shot bullets in the air to disperse the locals who were determined to kill Ndagijimana.

“The soldier was donning full Rwandan army combat gear and also in possession of an AK 47 rifle and 27 rounds of ammunition. After our GISO rescued him from the angry mob, he was taken to Kabale Central Police Station for questioning,” Mr Nyakahuma said.

Mr Nyakahuma hailed the locals for the improved vigilance against illegal entrants from Rwanda, following the sensitization campaign conducted in October by the Kabale District security authorities.

The incident comes at a time when Private Ronald Arinda, a Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) soldier attached to the Special Forces Command (SFC) is still being held in Rwanda.

Arinda, 23, a resident of Kakyerere in Ryakarimira town council in Kabale District was on November 27, arrested from a cattle market in Burera District in Northern Province, a few metres away from the Uganda-Rwanda border.

Arinda who was on his pass leave was tricked to cross to Rwanda by Rwandan security informers claiming that they had some cattle they wanted to sell to him.

Rwandan security operatives have for many times been accused of crossing to Uganda and kidnaping Ugandans at gunpoint before whisking them to Rwanda for detention. Only this month, two Rwandan security operatives crossed about 100 metres from the border to Buhoro village in Rwene parish, Buhara Sub County, and arrested a 21-year-old Anthony Twijukye.

In May 2020, armed Rwandan security personnel crossed to Kitojo village, Katuna Town Council, and arrested Obed Nicholas Tugumisirize alias Kacucu.

The Uganda-Rwanda borders were closed by Rwandan President, Paul Kagame in February 2019. Kagame issued a travel advisory to the citizens against traveling to Uganda, saying their safety was not guaranteed.

He accused Ugandan authorities of abducting Rwandan citizens and locking them up in non-designated areas. Kagame also accused Uganda of hosting and facilitating dissidents especially from Rwanda National Congress (RNC) and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which have declared war on the Kigali government.

However, his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni has on several occasions refuted the claims saying they are baseless.