Uganda military searches for missing helicopters

Gestart door Lex, 13/08/2012 | 09:33 uur

DvdW

Even een nieuwsbericht plaatsen, al schijnt dat niet altijd te mogen....  :big-smile:

Uganda military helicopters missing in Kenya
Two of four aircraft en route to Somalia are feared to have crashed in the foothills of Mount Kenya.
Last Modified: 13 Aug 2012 08:42


At least two Ugandan military helicopters went missing in Kenyan airspace on their way to Somalia to reinforce African Union peacekeeping forces battling al-Shabab rebels, army officials said.

The helicopters, which took off from Uganda on Sunday, are feared to have crashed in the dense forested foothills of snowcapped Mount Kenya, Africa's second highest peak at 5,199 metres.

"Four choppers left Uganda, one landed in Garissa," Bogita Ongeri, Kenyan army spokesman, said on Monday.
The three other helicopters went missing around the Mount Kenya region, but "the pilot of one has communicated to us," he added.

The pilot of the third helicopter had radioed for help from the Mount Kenya region, but rain and poor weather conditions are hampering rescue efforts.

"A search and rescue team has been dispatched," Ongeri added. "As of now we do not know that have crashed.... The terrain and weather are unfavourable."

Uganda is reported to have sent both the Russian made Mi-17 transport and Mi-24 attack helicopters to Somalia. Bongita said the missing aircraft were Mi-24 helicopters, which can carry up to eight passengers.

"We have received reports that one plane is within Mount Kenya," Francis Munyambu, regional police chief, said. "We do not know where exactly it is, there is a general location that has been stated."

Beefing up African Union force

Ugandan troops form the backbone of the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia. The air force last week said it would send combat and transport helicopters to Somalia to support the 17,000-strong African Union force there.

Al-Shabab struck the Ugandan capital Kampala in mid-2010 when suicide bombers from the al-Qaeda-linked group killed more than 70 people who were watching soccer on television, apparently in revenge for the presence of Ugandan troops in Somalia.

The rebels meted out similar treatment to Kenya, launching a series of grenade attacks that have killed several people, in retaliation for Nairobi sending its troops across the border last October in pursuit of al-Shabab.

The African Union force, which also includes Kenyan and Burundian troops, is planning an onslaught on Somalia's second biggest city Kismayu, which is a hub for the Islamist fighters, before August 20.

Weakened by internal divisions and financial constraints, the rebels have surrendered territory in the capital Mogadishu and central and southern Somalia where they are also battling Ethiopian forces.

A US-backed plan calls for Somalia to establish a legitimate government accepted by fractious clans and for a new parliament and constituent assembly to replace institutions plagued by corruption and infighting.

The National Constituent Assembly, sitting in Mogadishu early this month, approved a provisional constitution to replace an eight-year-old Transitional Federal Charter and lead to the end of the transition process on August 20, when the mandate of the UN-backed government expires.

Source: Agencies

Bron: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/08/201281355735252317.html
The beauty of grace is that it makes life not fair...

ת'תקווה בלב נועל, עם חזק לא נתקפל
כי לא נולד הבן זונה שיעצור את ישראל

Lex

The Ugandan military says it is searching for a number of its helicopters which have gone missing.

The helicopters were part of a group which was scheduled to make a stop in the Kenyan town of Wajir, but only one did so.

It is not clear how many helicopters have gone missing, nor how many people were on board.

The aircraft were part of a contingent being sent to reinforce the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia.

"The search is going on, we don't know what exactly happened but we are investigating it," Ugandan military spokesman Felix Kulayigye told Reuters.

Ugandan troops are part of the African Union force fighting the Somali Islamist group al-Shabab, which pledges loyalty to al-Qaeda.

The force has been planning to launch an "onslaught" against al-Shabab in the Somali port of Kismayo later this month.

Al-Shabab has staged deadly attacks in Uganda, which is the largest contributor to the peacekeeping force. A double suicide attack in 2010 killed 76 people watching the football World Cup final.

BBC News,
13 August 2012 07:11