DStv Channel 403 Wednesday, 25 December 2024

Two foreign tourists among three killed in Uganda

KAMPALA - Gunmen killed three people, including a British and a South African tourist, in a world-famous Ugandan national park, police said.

The trio were driving through the Queen Elizabeth National Park when they came under attack from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group, police spokesman Fred Enanga said on X, formerly Twitter.

"The three were killed, and their safari vehicle burnt," Enanga said. 

"Our joint forces responded immediately upon receiving the information and are aggressively pursuing the suspected ADF rebels," he added. 

Uganda's wildlife authority identified the victims as a UK citizen, a South African and their Ugandan guide.

"We urge the public to remain patient and allow the investigative process to run its course," it said in a statement, adding that all parks remained open. 

Following the attack, the UK government updated its travel advisory for the East African nation, warning that the "attackers remain at large".

The park, in southwest Uganda, shares a border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its famous Virunga National Park, a habitat for rare mountain gorillas, and where armed groups are believed to operate.

In 2019, a US tourist and her safari guide where kidnapped by four gunmen as they drove through the park around dusk.

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