The fleeing rebels of Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) are being arrested by the Congolese civilians who have previously suffered atrocities committed by the rebel outfit.
The rebels who are fleeing the UPDF attacks on the camps are helplessly being arrested by the civilians in Erengeti and Mwalika.
According to Congolese sources, the artillery and air strikes largely wiped out the ADF camps but the survivors have fled and they are being arrested by unarmed civilians who have previously suffered at the hands of the rebels.
Some of those arrested, according to sources, are from Beni and Lobero which have been epicenters of the ADF attacks against civilians.
The survivors of the attacks who are now in the hands of the Congolese army say some of the camps attacked had more than 300 fighters.
It’s not clear if these numbers included children and women who are also in these camps. One of the biggest was Sun Camp which reportedly had the best trained fighters with an estimated 500 fighters.
The joint forces of the UPDF and the Congolese forces are now searching for the leaders of the rebel group, especially Musa Baluku who replaced Jamil Mukula.
Uganda launched the attack against the rebels after they claimed responsibility for the two bombs in Kampala that killed at least seven people last month.
Earlier on October, 24, using its telegram account, ISIS also claimed responsibility for an attack on a pork restaurant in Kampala which killed a waitress and injured three.
A day after, another bomb was detonated in a bus that was travelling from Kampala to Bushenyi in the western part of the country.
The ADF also known as Madina at Tauheed Wau Mujahedeen, is also responsible for many attacks across North Kivu and Ituri Provinces in eastern DRC.
Under the leadership of Baluku, the ADF has been notorious in this region for its brutal violence against Congolese citizens and regional military forces, with attacks killing over 849 civilians in 2020 alone, according to a United Nations report.
