About 1,000 former fighters from Democratic Republic of
Congo's rebel group M23 have escaped from a camp in Uganda where they were
being held as soldiers tried tried to repatriate them, the Ugandan army has
said.
The rebels escaped from the camp in Bihanga, about 300km
southwest of the Ugandan capital Kampala, as they feared for their safety if
they were sent back to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a Uganda army
spokesman said.
Several of the ex-rebels were wounded by gunshots after
those in the camp refused to board army trucks sent in before dawn to take them
to the airport, according to M23 chief Bertrand Bisimwa.
A Ugandan officer speaking to AFP news agency on condition
of anonymity admitted the operation had encountered "resistance" and
confirmed that several in the camp were wounded by bullets.
The Ugandan army said the camp had been holding 1,373 former
M23 fighters.
An AFP reporter at Entebbe airport saw 120 of them board a
plane bound for the DRC.
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