New threat: Uganda drilling rig
'Uganda rebels plotting oil attacks'
A new rebel group is recruiting local people in districts around Uganda's oil-rich Albertine Rift with the aim of destabilising the region to disrupt oil exploration and production, military officials claimed.
Major Felix Kuraigye, Uganda's defence and army spokesman said that the army is aware of plans to destabilise the oil region and is on course to ensure it does not happen.
"We have already made arrests, we are in position to counter any threat in the region," he told Dow Jones in a phone interview.
Last week, the Ugandan army produced up to 11 rebel suspects in court.
Court documents indicate that the 11 and others at large formed a rebel group called the Popular Patriotic Front and were recruiting people to fight the government of Uganda in the north and north-western region where commercial oil reserves have been confirmed.
Several guns, walkie talkies and other military equipment were recovered from the suspects, Kuraigye said.
Military officials have said that the new group is targeting mainly Masindi and Amuri districts, where significant oil finds have been discovered, a Dow Jones report said.
While intelligence sources have said that the rebel group is training a militia with the aim of sabotaging oil exploration and production by carrying out attacks on oil installations and expatriate workers.
The region is just recovering from a 20-year insurgency led by rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army.
Some of the companies currently prospecting for oil on the Ugandan side of the Albertine Rift are Heritage Oil, Tullow Oil, Tower Resources and Dominion Petroleum.