The Ugandan jihadists were no doubt simply trying to stop the Zionist occupation of the Congo. “Congo army attacks Ugandan Islamist rebels in lawless east,” by Kenny Katombe and Chrispin Mvano for Reuters, January 17 (thanks to Maxwell):
(Reuters) – Democratic Republic of Congo forces attacked Ugandan Islamist rebels in the lawless east on Friday, launching a U.N.-backed offensive to clear insurgents from the mineral-rich zone.
Reuters correspondents outside the town of Beni, in North Kivu province, heard heavy gunfire as government troops moved in on positions held by ADF-NALU rebels who have been based in Congo for years and are seen as a major obstacle to peace….
ADF-NALU is an alliance of groups opposed to the Ugandan government that has operated from bases in eastern Congo since the mid-2000s, undermining Kinshasa’s grip on the area and handing Uganda a pretext for intervening there….
ADF-NALU has been blamed for a spate of recent attacks and kidnappings around Beni, including the deaths of some 40 civilians in an attack on Christmas Day.
The rebel group is believed to number up to 1,400 fighters and has abducted about 300 Congolese civilians over the past year, according to a U.N. report.
Having helped the Congolese army vanquish M23, the 3,000-strong U.N. Intervention Brigade had been widely expected to turn its attention on ADF-NALU and Rwandan Hutu FDLR rebels who are also roaming Congo’s east.
The Ugandan government has said ADF-NALU is allied with Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab movement but analysts say the nature of these ties is not clear, despite the ADF-NALU’s clear Islamist ideology.