By Anna Borzello in Kampala

Ugandan Allied Democratic Forces rebels have attacked a camp for displaced people in Bundibugyo district in western Uganda, killing at least 24 people and injuring an estimated 15 others.

The rebels, a coalition of an Islamist sect and a formally defunct Ugandan rebel group who say they are fighting to overthrow President Yoweri Museveni, have recently stepped up their activity in western Uganda.

Allied Democratic Forces rebels struck Kirindi displaced camp in the western Ugandan district of Bundibugyo at 1900 local time (1600 GMT) on Saturday.

Local security officials told the BBC that about 100 rebels launched a five-hour raid on the camp which houses about 500 civilians displaced by the three-year insurgency.

The rebels set huts ablaze and opened fire on the camp residents.

Soldiers killed

An unspecified number of Ugandan soldiers are reportedly among the dead.

The military has yet to make an official comment on the attack, which is the latest incident in a recent upsurge of ADF activity in western Uganda.

Last week the rebels raided another displaced camp in Bundibugyo district, killing 10 civilians and injuring 10 others.

In November the Ugandan army launched a major operation, named "Mountain Sweep", in an effort to destroy the rebel bases in the Ruwenzori Mountains which straddle the common border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

However, ADF attacks have since continued unabated, claiming the lives of at least 150 civilians and security personnel.

Humanitarian agencies, working in the region to help some of the 100,000 people displaced by the insurgency, have also been forced to scale down their activity both because of the fighting and because of rebel threats against their operations.