/ 10 September 2010

Uganda bolsters security after al-Shabaab threat

Ugandan police said on Thursday they had tightened security across the country after Somalia’s extremist rebels, al-Shabaab, who claimed deadly Kampala attacks in July, threatened further violence.

Police spokesperson Judith Nabakooba said security had been boosted as the fasting month of Ramadan was coming to an end and after a top al-Shabaab official warned Uganda on Tuesday of fresh attacks if it does not withdraw its forces from Somalia.

“We are not taking the latest threats by al-Shabaab lightly,” Nabakooba said.

The al-Qaeda-inspired al-Shabaab militants said the July 11 suicide attacks in Kampala that killed 76 people were in retaliation for Uganda’s deployment of troops for the African Union Mission in Somalia. — Sapa-AFP