Uganda sets LRA truce conditions

LRA leader Joseph Kony is wanted by the ICC for war crimes

Uganda has agreed to a conditional cessation of hostilities in the war with the rebel Lord's Resistance Army.

A spokesman said this would depend on the LRA quartering its soldiers in designated locations. Correspondents say the LRA is unlikely to agree.

The LRA has called a ceasefire, but Uganda has said a more comprehensive peace plan must precede a ceasefire.

The talks have been greeted as the best chance of ending a 20-year war in which thousands have died or been abducted.

Deadline

"If the LRA agree in Juba to assemble at locations that are designated by the government of southern Sudan, and put themselves under some controlling authority, in this case probably the SPLA [Sudan People's Liberation Army], the government of Uganda will order the cessation of operations by the UPDF [Ugandan People's Defence Force]," Ugandan government spokesman Robert Kabushenga told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

"Talk of a ceasefire is a misnomer," Mr Kabushenga added.

More than 1m Ugandans have fled their homes

"In a ceasefire you have to have a line of control - in this case all the territory is under the control of the UPDF. What is happening are operations against fugitives who are hiding in different places."

Ugandan forces have killed several LRA fighters in recent weeks, including at least one senior official, as talks with the LRA were beginning in Juba, in southern Sudan.

The Ugandan government insists that a comprehensive peace agreement - with the rebels providing details of their forces and deployment - needs to be in place before a ceasefire can be agreed.

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has set a 12 September deadline for thrashing out a final peace deal.

The government also wants a guarantee the LRA will not use the halt in fighting to reinforce its positions.

International Criminal Court wants the LRA's top officials - including leader Joseph Kony - to face charges including murder, rape and forcibly enlisting children.

Against the wishes of the ICC, Uganda has offered amnesty to LRA leaders in exchange for peace talks.

The LRA has abducted thousands of children and forced them to fight since the conflict began.

More than a million people have fled their homes across northern Uganda because of the conflict.