Bodies of Ugandans killed in South Sudan ambush returned
Two Ugandan nationals, Abasi Nsubuga (L) and Emmanuel Serewada (R)who were shot dead alongside a yet to be identified Tanzanian national in an ambush staged by unknown gunmen along Yei-Kaya road in Central Equatoria State of South Sudan. PHOTOS/ COURTESY
What you need to know:
- Abasi Nsubuga and Emmanuel Sserwadda, all residents of Koboko District, and an unidentified Tanzanian national were shot dead on Wednesday afternoon at Ligi, two kilometres from Kaya Township in South Sudan.
The bodies of two Ugandans, who were waylaid and shot dead by gunmen in South Sudan, have been returned to Uganda.
Abasi Nsubuga and Emmanuel Sserwadda, all residents of Koboko District, and an unidentified Tanzanian national were shot dead on Wednesday afternoon at Ligi, two kilometres from Kaya Township in South Sudan.
The trio was travelling in a Toyota Premio when they were ambushed by unknown gunmen.
Mr Ashirafu Mambo, the chairperson for Koboko District, said: “The bodies are being kept at Koboko mortuary awaiting post-mortem. For the body of the Tanzanian, we have advised the South Sudan government to take it to the Tanzanian embassy in South Sudan.”
Mr Mambo said the route the deceased used is unsafe and blamed the continuous killings of Ugandans on the South Sudan government’s failure to provide sufficient security in its territory.
In an interview with Daily Monitor yesterday, Mr Aggrey Cyrus, the commissioner for Yei County, said: “The assailants, who attacked three motorists, were reportedly 18 in number. The group had four guns while others had clubs and machetes. I have directed a search to find who they are and the whereabouts of their base.”
Mr Cyrus said the place where the trio was shot dead has been a dark spot since last year.
He said the deceased could have been waylaid by members of the National Salvation Front (NAS) anti-government militia group or organised criminals.
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Mr Swaibu Muhammed, the chairperson of the Koboko Taxi Operators Association, said: “It is a dark day again for us in Koboko after losing three people in an ambush in South Sudan. The driver [Nsubuga] had gone for his second trip of the day and he was carrying luggage to Yei in South Sudan when he landed into the ambush.”
Mr Muhammed said they have lost more than 10 people within one year along the Koboko-Kaya-Yei-Juba route.
“With these incidents, this route should be closed and also vehicles should be stopped from crossing to South Sudan because whenever this happens the South Sudan government denies, saying they don’t know about the Yei route,” he said.
In a related incident, two residents of Madi Opei Sub-county in Lamwo District are nursing serious injuries sustained at the hands of suspected South Sudanese gunmen.
The gunmen are said to have entered Uganda on Wednesday.
The victims are Mr Patrick Ogak, 33, and Mr George Olango, 29. They suffered injuries on their shoulders, head, and arms.
The area LC3 chairman, Mr Felix Nyero Lawir, said 15-year-old Henry Odera escaped the attack unharmed.
“The boy ran away after he spotted the gunmen first but the elders were nabbed, seriously beaten and tied to trees,” Mr Nyero told the Monitor in a phone interview yesterday.
