A Ugandan court has convicted Thomas Kwoyelo, a former commander of the rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), of numerous war crimes.
This marks the first instance of a high-ranking member of the LRA being tried by Uganda's judiciary.
Established in the late 1980s under the leadership of Joseph Kony, the LRA aimed to overthrow the Ugandan government. For nearly two decades, the group wreaked havoc across Uganda from their bases in the north, engaging in horrific acts of violence.
The LRA gained notoriety for its extreme brutality, including rapes, abductions, mutilations, and murders carried out with crude instruments. Around 2005, under increasing military pressure, the LRA relocated to South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic, where they continued their reign of terror against civilians.
Kwoyelo faced more than 70 charges, including murder, rape, enslavement, torture, and kidnapping. He denied all accusations, and in the courtroom in Gulu, Uganda, on Tuesday, he appeared to disagree with the verdict, shaking his head and crossing his arms on the desk as it was announced.
Justice Michael Elubu, part of a four-judge panel, delivered the verdict, stating, "The verdict of this court is that the accused was found guilty."
Captured by the Ugandan military in 2009 in the northeastern jungles of Congo, Kwoyelo has been held in pre-trial detention since then, with his case slowly progressing through the Ugandan legal system.
The court found him guilty of 44 charges, dismissed 31 as duplicates, and acquitted him on three counts. Pre-sentencing hearings are set to begin next week, and a sentencing date will follow.
Joseph Kony, the LRA leader, remains at large despite being wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague. In 2021, the ICC convicted another senior LRA commander, Dominic Ongwen, of similar war crimes, sentencing him to 25 years in prison.
