Uganda charges 15 with terrorism for role in IS-linked bombings

A general view shows wreckages of police vehicles at the scene of a blast in Kampala, Uganda. [Reuters]

Uganda on Thursday charged 15 people with offences including terrorism and aiding terrorism related to their alleged role in bombings in the country's capital and elsewhere in October and November that left at least nine people dead.

In the early hours of Nov 16 a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance of a police station in the centre of Kampala. Three minutes later two other suicide bombers detonated along a road that leads to the parliament.

Those bombings killed at least seven people including the bombers and injured dozens.

At least two people were killed in two other bombings in October, one at a restaurant and another on a bus.

Islamic State (IS), which is allied with the rebel Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), claimed responsibility for the Nov. 16 attack and the restaurant attack.

According to a charge sheet seen by Reuters, the 15 people, among other accusations, "intentionally and unlawfully, manufactured, delivered, placed and detonated an improvised explosive device ... with intent to cause death or serious bodily injuries," for the purposes of influencing the government or intimidating the public.

Originally a Ugandan group, the ADF has operated in the dense forests in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo across the border with Uganda for more than three decades. The group began killing civilians in large numbers in 2014.

The attacks in October and November prompted the Ugandan military to deploy in eastern Congo in late November to take on the Islamist fighters.

The suspects were remanded until Jan. 13, when they will appear in court again.