Off the wire
• Egypt army kills 134 militants in 4 days  • Ireland's Q2 GDP grows 6.7 pct year-on-year  • U.S. PREPARES TO TAKE 10,000 REFUGEES NEXT YEAR -- MEDIA  • India, Pakistan to devise new strategies ending ceasefire violations in Kashmir  • Spotlight: European Parliament votes in favor of changing Dublin rule on migration  • 409 human rights violations reported in DR Congo in August  • Indian trooper wounded in skirmishes with Pakistan military on Kashmir LoC  • Hungary's prosecution orders investigation into camerawoman kicking migrants  • Israel agrees to expand Gaza power plant, supply natural gas: official  • Gene discovery may lead to new drugs for glaucoma: study  
You are here: 　 Home

Uganda denies Al-Shabaab claims of holding its soldiers hostage

Xinhua, September 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

Ugandan military on Thursday denied claims that some of its soldiers serving under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) were abducted by the Islamist group Al-Shabaab.

Al-Shabaab militants last Tuesday attacked an African Union military base in southern Somalia. Its spokesperson Abdiaziz Abu Muga claimed Wednesday they were holding Ugandan troops hostage after the attack.

"Al-Shabaab can't claim to have any of our soldiers under their hostage. This is a pure lie and propaganda. AMISOM has reliably briefed us that they can account for all the soldiers," Uganda's army spokesperson Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda told Xinhua by telephone.

Twelve Ugandan soldiers died in the attack, according to the army. Enditem