ITURI MILITIAS REPORTEDLY OBTAINING ARMS AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L KINSHASA 001072 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/28/2015 TAGS: PGOV KPKO PHUM PREL MOPS UG CG SUBJECT: ITURI MILITIAS REPORTEDLY OBTAINING ARMS AND TRAINING FROM UGANDA Classified By: Poloff Gons Nachman for Reasons 1.4 B and D ¶1. (C) Summary. Monuc and NGO officials in Ituri have received credible reports of increased support for Ituri militias from Ugandan businessmen and military officers in the form of arms shipments, training, and efforts to build a coalition of militias. Monuc officials point to recent meetings in Kampala between militia leaders and Ugandan elements, the apparent presence of Ugandan trainers in Ituri, and the recent use of heavier weapons by militia as evidence of this renewed support. End Summary. ¶2. (C) MONUC and NGO officials in Ituri have received reports from multiple sources over the past several weeks pointing to an alleged effort by Ugandan elements to form an alliance among the remaining Ituri armed groups, particularly the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC),the Front for National Integration (FNI),the Front for Patriotic Resistance in Ituri (FRPI),and the Party for Unity and Safeguarding of the Integrity of the Congo. Meetings between Ugandans and FNI leaders have been alleged in Kampala on May 10, and among PUSIC, FNI, and UPC leaders on June 12 and June 22. ¶3. (C) The Director of German Agro Action (AAA) (a German NGO present in various parts of Ituri) said June 28 he had received reports indicating the FRPI and PUSIC militias were participating in a joint training in the use of heavy arms in the area of Bavi, 40 kms SE of Bunia. According to him, the militias are training with about 50 mortars brought from Uganda via the Semliki River, next to the village of Tshabi. The reports assert that Ugandan officers are conducting the training. According to AAA's director, the use of a significant number of mortars and rocket-propelled grenades by FRPI militia against peacekeepers near Medu June 27 gives credence to reports that this militia has received new arms shipments from Uganda. (Note: Monuc notes that these weaopns are definitely new to these militias, representing an evolutionary, albeit negative, new element. End Note.) Comment -------------- ¶4. (C) Monuc's robust actions in Ituri have reduced the number of armed militia from an estimated 15,000 in 2003 to as few as 1,000 now. Unfortunately, a smaller but better-armed and trained element still poses a significant security threat, as shown by recent military engagements between MONUC forces and militias lasting several hours. MEECE