Uganda army 'breaking peace deal'

LRA leader Joseph Kony is again reported to be near an assembly point

Uganda's army is moving its troops to near rebel assembly zones in Sudan, breaking a ceasefire agreement, the Lord's Resistance Army rebels say.

LRA spokesman Obonyo Olweny told the BBC that truck-loads of troops and helicopters had crossed the border.

Mr Olweny denied army accusations that rebel fighters were moving away from the camps where they have gathered.

The peace talks in southern Sudan are seen as the best chance in years to end two decades of conflict in Uganda.

Army denial

Correspondents says the accusations and counter-accusations are a major blow to the peace talks but Mr Olweny said the rebels remained committed to peace.

"We are in for the talks, we shall not be derailed from the process," he told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

"It is the government of Uganda and the UPDF [army] who are not wholeheartedly in the peace process."

He said the troop movements could signal a return to hostilities.

Army spokesman Major Felix Kulayigye denied the LRA accusations, saying the nearest positions were 45km from the assembly points.

"Don't forget Sudan is not France or Germany. Forty-five kilometres on those roads is as good as two days' journey... They are just looking for excuses to jump out of these talks," he told Reuters news agency.

Moving

Mr Olweny also said that LRA leader Joseph Kony was in the Ri-Kwangba assembly zone, after moving from the other camp, Owiny Ki-bul.

Under the terms of the truce signed in August, the LRA had agreed to assemble at two points in southern Sudan by last week.

The LRA had been given three weeks to assemble its fighters in return for an amnesty from the Ugandan government.

According to the Ugandan army, 600 LRA fighters had gathered close to Owiny Ki-bul last week.

But Maj Kulaigje told the BBC on Wednesday there were indications that the fighters had now begun to move west towards the River Nile and were 8km from the reception camp.

Uganda has been in touch with the mediator of this peace process, the government of southern Sudan, to ask them to intervene.

Maj Kulaigje said if the LRA continued heading west then the Ugandan army would have no choice but to deal with them.

Another major obstacle to the peace talks is the war crimes charges announced by the International Criminal Court against Joseph Kony and three of his senior commanders.

Uganda has said they can have an amnesty if they agree to end their rebellion but the ICC insists that the international arrest warrants still stand.

The LRA says they will not lay down their weapons until the warrants are dropped.

The rebels have abducted thousands of children and forced them to fight since the conflict in the north began two decades ago.

More than 1m people have fled their homes because of the fighting.