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LRA update thread: With the ICC's verdict in Dominic #OngwenTrial due later this week, feels timely to share updates on what Joseph Kony and remaining #LRA groups are up to. Here's a snapshot:
Kony location: Despite unconfirmed rumors of his death, more credible reports indicate he's still in Kafia Kingi, where his group has operated since 2011. Latest confirmed sighting was May 2020, with additional corroboration coming in October 2020.
Kony activities: Retirement? As @KristofTiteca and I documented last year in @africaarguments, Kony appears to have given up on controlling other LRA commanders, and lives a relatively "quiet" life of farming and honey-gathering. https://africanarguments.org/2020/03/joseph-kony-lra-rebels-threat-selling-honey/
Other LRA commanders: There are at least two splinter LRA factions taking advantage of their newfound freedom. Both operate along the CAR/DRC border, and survive by looting remote communities and trading looted goods on the side.
Abductions - good news: As documented by our @CrisisTracker project, LRA abductions continue to decline, from 676 in 2016 (and many more in previous years) to 180 in 2020. Most abductees are adults released within a few days.
Abductions - bad news: I periodically hear ppl dismiss importance of short-term abductions, as it means LRA isn't recruiting. But being abducted for even a few hours can still be traumatic, and LRA often loots food supplies that took farmers months of labor to produce.
Missing children and youth: The LRA is still forcibly recruiting children and youth, just at lower levels. The @CrisisTracker has documented 138 children and youth abductions since 2018, including 108 who remain missing and presumed in captivity.
For more detail on LRA activity, see this presser/mini-report @Invisible released yesterday with local partners: https://invisiblechildren.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Press-Release-1-February-As-Ongwen-verdict-nears-abducted-LRA-children-remain-missing.pdf
French version here: https://invisiblechildren.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Communique%CC%81-de-presse-2-de%CC%81cembre-La-LRA-a-enleve%CC%81-43-enfants.pdf
Finally, if you're looking for more info on Ongwen's trial, I recommend checking out this Justice in Conflict symposium hosted by @MarkKersten: https://justiceinconflict.org/2021/02/01/the-life-and-trials-of-dominic-ongwen-a-jic-symposium/
