UPDF Confirms Dr. Kizza Besigye’s Court Martial Appearance Following Alleged Abduction from Nairobi

The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) have announced that Dr. Kizza Besigye, the veteran opposition leader, will be arraigned before the General Court Martial this morning. “Go to Makindye Court Martial today at 11 am; you will find the answer you need,” said Brig. Felix Kulaigye, the UPDF spokesperson, when contacted by Uganda Radio Network regarding Besigye’s whereabouts.

Besigye was abducted from Nairobi, Kenya, last week and forcibly returned to Uganda. According to reliable sources, who spoke to Uganda Radio Network under anonymity due to the matter’s sensitivity, Besigye is currently being held at Makindye military barracks in Kampala, since Sunday. This has been corroborated by his wife, Winnie Byanyima, who took to X (formerly Twitter) to demand his release from military custody, stating that he is not a soldier.

“I request the government of Uganda to release my husband, Dr. Kizza Besigye, from where he is being held immediately. He was kidnapped last Saturday while he was in Nairobi for Hon. Martha Karua’s book launch. I am now reliably informed that he is in a military jail in Kampala. We, his family and his lawyers, demand to see him. He is not a soldier. Why is he being held in a military jail?” Byanyima’s post read.

On Tuesday night, Uganda Radio Network broke the story that Besigye had gone missing after close friends and relatives lost contact with him. According to multiple sources, Besigye was last seen on Saturday in Uganda when he left his home in Kasangati, Wakiso district, to check on a patient at a hospital in Kampala. Later that day, he traveled to Nairobi for what was confirmed to be attendance at Martha Karua’s book launch.

Another source revealed that they lost contact with Besigye and his travel companion shortly after he indicated his arrival in Kenya. “He sent us a message saying that he had arrived, but we haven’t heard from him since. His phone and that of the person he traveled with are off,” the source said.