| Uganda National Rescue Front | |
|---|---|
| Leaders | Moses Ali |
| Active regions | Uganda (mainly in West Nile) |
| Ideology | Idi Amin loyalism |
| Part of | West Nile rebels |
| Allies |  Uganda government (1985–1986) Libya (until 1985) Saudi Arabia |
| Opponents | Uganda government (1981–1985) |
| Battles and wars | Uganda Bush War |
The Uganda National Rescue Front (UNRF), refers to two former armed rebel groups in Uganda's West Nile sub-region that first opposed, then became incorporated into the Ugandan armed forces.
The first Uganda National Rescue Front, also known as "National Salvation Front", [1] was formed to oppose Milton Obote during his second term (1980–1985) as president of Uganda. The UNRF was composed of former supporters of Idi Amin, and headed by Brigadier Moses Ali, formerly Amin's Minister of Finance. [2]
After the fall of Obote in July 1984/5, over 1,000 cadres of the UNRF joined Yoweri Museveni's government. Luwero Moses Ali held a large number and variety of positions in Museveni's government, including Minister of Tourism and Wildlife, [3] [4] and Minister of Youth, Culture and Sport. In April 1990 he was arrested on treason charges, and incarcerated until June 1992, when he was released and acquitted. [5] This did not prevent his appointment as Minister of Internal Affairs, Minister for Disaster Preparedness, and Deputy Prime Minister.
| UNRF II insurgency | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Uganda | UNRF II | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Yoweri Museveni | Ali Bamuze | ||||||
The Uganda National Rescue Front II was a group that broke from the West Nile Bank Front in 1996, and included members of the original UNRF that did not make peace with Museveni. It operated mostly in Aringa County, Arua District, out of bases in southern Sudan, and received support from the Sudanese government (the National Islamic Front), in retaliation for Ugandan government support for the Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was led by Major General Ali Bamuze.
On December 24, 2002, the UNRF II signed a formal ceasefire with the government in the town of Yumbe in northwestern Uganda. Terms included a battalion of UNRF II soldiers being incorporated in the Ugandan army, and USh 4.2 billion being distributed to the group. Moses Ali is reported to have participated in the negotiations. [6]
Idi Amin Dada Oumee was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern world history.
Apollo Milton Obote was a Ugandan politician who served as the second prime minister of Uganda from 1962 to 1966 and the second president of Uganda from 1966 to 1971 and later from 1980 to 1985.
Yusuf Kironde Lule was a Ugandan professor and politician who served as the fourth president of Uganda between 13 April and 20 June 1979.
Juma Abdalla Oris was a Ugandan military officer and government minister under the dictatorship of Idi Amin. After fleeing his country during the Uganda–Tanzania War, he became leader of the West Nile Bank Front (WNBF), a rebel group active in the West Nile region of Uganda during the 1990s.
The Front for National Salvation (FRONASA) was a Ugandan rebel group led by Yoweri Museveni. The group factually emerged in 1971, although it was formally founded in 1973. FRONASA, along with other militant groups such as Kikosi Maalum, formed the Uganda National Liberation Front (UNLF) and its military wing the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA) in 1979 to fight alongside Tanzanian forces against Idi Amin.
The Uganda–Tanzania War, known in Tanzania as the Kagera War and in Uganda as the 1979 Liberation War, was fought between Uganda and Tanzania from October 1978 until June 1979 and led to the overthrow of Ugandan President Idi Amin. The war was preceded by a deterioration of relations between Uganda and Tanzania following Amin's 1971 overthrow of President Milton Obote, who was close to the President of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere. Over the following years, Amin's regime was destabilised by violent purges, economic problems, and dissatisfaction in the Uganda Army.
The Ugandan Bush War was a civil war fought in Uganda by the official Ugandan government and its armed wing, the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA), against a number of rebel groups, most importantly the National Resistance Army (NRA), from 1980 to 1986.
Kikosi Maalum, also known as the Special Battalion or the grand coalition, was a militia of Ugandan exiles formed in Tanzania to fight against the regime of Idi Amin. The unit was founded by and loyal to former Ugandan President Milton Obote, and served as his de facto private army. It was commanded by former army officers David Oyite-Ojok, and Tito Okello. Kikosi Maalum took part in the Uganda–Tanzania War, fighting alongside the Tanzanian military against Amin's forces. In course of this conflict, the militia was nominally unified with other Ugandan rebel groups, forming the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA) in 1979. After the fall of Amin's regime and Obote's return to power, Kikosi Maalum became the core of Uganda's new national army.
Mustafa Adrisi Abataki was a Ugandan military officer who served as the third vice president of Uganda from 1977 to 1979 and was one of President Idi Amin's closest associates. In 1978, after Adrisi was injured in a suspicious auto accident, troops loyal to him mutinied. Amin sent troops against the mutineers, some of whom had fled across the Tanzanian border, possibly contributing to the Uganda–Tanzania War. As the Ugandan war effort collapsed, Adrisi fled to Sudan where he claimed to retain the post of Vice President. He became briefly involved in the rebel activities of the Uganda National Rescue Front before returning from exile in 1987. He struggled with health problems in his later life and died in 2013.
The military history of Uganda begins with actions before the conquest of the country by the British Empire. After the British conquered the country, there were various actions, including in 1887, and independence was granted in 1962. After independence, Uganda was plagued with a series of conflicts, most rooted in the problems caused by colonialism. Like many African nations, Uganda endured a series of civil wars and coup d'états. Since the 2000s in particular, the Uganda People's Defence Force has been active in peacekeeping operations for the African Union and the United Nations.
Moses Ali is a Ugandan politician and retired military general. He is the Second Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of Government Business in Parliament. He previously served in the Cabinet of Uganda as Third Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of Government Business from May 2011 until June 2016. He also served as the first First Deputy Prime Minister from June 2016 to May 2021. He has served as the elected Member of Parliament for East Moyo County in Adjumani District since 2011.
During the Uganda–Tanzania War, the Battle of Bondo was fought on 27 May 1979 near the town of Bondo, Uganda, between Tanzanian forces and Ugandan troops loyal to Idi Amin. A band of Uganda Army soldiers opened fire on the Tanzanian Minziro Brigade as it advanced towards Arua, before fleeing in the face of a Tanzanian charge. Several Tanzanians were killed and wounded by their own artillery. It was the last battle of the war. Arua fell without resistance shortly thereafter.
The Uganda Army, also known as Uganda Armed Forces, served as the national armed forces of Uganda during the dictatorship of Idi Amin (1971–1979). It mostly collapsed during the Uganda–Tanzania War, but remnants continued to operate in exile from 1979. These pro-Amin rebel forces continued to be called the "Uganda Army" and maintained a semblance of cohesion until 1980, when they fully fractured into rival factions.
The Uganda Army, also known as the Uganda Rifles, served as the national armed forces of Uganda during the presidencies of Mutesa II and Milton Obote. As time went on, the military was gradually expanded and increasingly interfered in Uganda's national politics. It played a prominent role in defeating local insurgencies, suppressing opposition to Obote, and intervened in conflicts in the Congo as well as Sudan. Dissatisfied soldiers overthrew Obote in 1971, resulting in the establishment of the Second Republic of Uganda under the dictatorship of army commander Idi Amin. The Uganda Army was purged, with thousands of suspected pro-Obote troops killed or fleeing the country. The military was consequently split into an army serving under Amin – the Uganda Army (1971–1980) – and exiled rebel factions. The latter helped to overthrow Amin's regime during the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79, and became the core of the Uganda National Liberation Army which would serve as Uganda's national military from 1980 to 1986.
The Save Uganda Movement was a militant Ugandan opposition group which fought against the government of President Idi Amin from 1973 to 1979. Described as "specialists in sabotage" by journalist John Darnton, SUM attempted to overthrow Amin by waging a guerrilla campaign of bombings, raids, and assassinations. The movement mainly operated from Kenya and Tanzania. Unlike much of the Ugandan opposition at the time, SUM had no firm ideology and was decentralized, consisting of different groups with similar aims. SUM cooperated with the forces loyal to ex-President Milton Obote during the Uganda–Tanzania War (1978–1979) and eventually joined the Uganda National Liberation Front which formed the country's post-Amin governments.
The 1972 invasion of Uganda was an armed attempt by Ugandan insurgents, supported by Tanzania, to overthrow the regime of Idi Amin. Under the orders of former Ugandan President Milton Obote, insurgents launched an invasion of southern Uganda with limited Tanzanian support in September 1972. The rebel force mostly consisted of the "People's Army" whose forces were mainly loyal to Obote, but also included guerillas led by Yoweri Museveni. The operation was hampered by problems from the start, as a planned rebel commando raid had to be aborted, Amin was warned of the impending invasion, and the rebels lacked numbers, training, and equipment. Regardless, the militants occupied a few towns in southern Uganda at the invasion's start. However, no major popular uprising erupted as Obote had hoped.
The Former Uganda National Army was a Ugandan rebel group active during the Ugandan Bush War and the subsequent insurgencies in the country. The group claimed to be a continuation of the Uganda Army under Idi Amin and was made up mostly of Amin loyalists. It came to be led by General Isaac Lumago and Brigadier Amin Onzi. The group was mainly active in Northern Uganda as well as Zaire and Sudan, where they operated rear bases and acquired weapons and equipment.
In October 1980, Uganda's West Nile Region was the site of a major military campaign, as Uganda Army (UA) remnants invaded from Zaire as well as Sudan and seized several major settlements, followed by a counteroffensive by the Uganda National Liberation Army (UNLA) supported by militias and Tanzanian forces. The campaign resulted in large-scale destruction and massacres of civilians, mostly perpetrated by the UNLA and allied militants, with 1,000 to 30,000 civilians killed and 250,000 displaced. The clashes mark the beginning of the Ugandan Bush War.
The Western Uganda campaign of 1979 was a military operation by Tanzanian forces and allied Ugandan rebels, mainly the Front for National Salvation (FRONASA), against Uganda Army (UA) troops loyal to Ugandan President Idi Amin during the Uganda–Tanzania War. The operation was launched by the Tanzania People's Defence Force's (TPDF) "Task Force", consisting of two brigades, in February 1979 to cover the Tanzanians' western axis of advance into Uganda. After securing the important city of Mbarara against Uganda Army counter-attacks, the TPDF Task Force captured several cities as well as the Kilembe Mines in the Rwenzori Mountains. These operations coincided with an expansion of the separatist Rwenzururu movement, a rebel group that exploited the collapse of the Uganda Army along the Uganda-Zaire border to secure territory and weaponry for itself. From the Rwenzori Mountains, the Task Force advanced to Hoima; there, it combined forces with another Tanzanian force, the 205th Brigade. Together, the TPDF formations advanced to Masindi, capturing it after a battle south of the city. With western Uganda largely under Tanzanian control, the Task Force and 205th Brigade subsequently split up again to capture northwestern and north-central Uganda.
Bernard Rwehururu was a Ugandan military officer and author. He served in various Ugandan militaries from 1965 until 2013, including under the governments of Milton Obote, Idi Amin, Tito Okello, and Yoweri Museveni.