{UAH} When Amin annexed Kagera Salient onto Uganda

When Amin annexed Kagera Salient onto Uganda

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Added 17th October 2019 11:21 PM

October 29, 1978, the Ugandan invasion force killed the Tanzanian soldiers guarding the border post and occupied Kagera Salient Tanzania territory, 'within 25 minutes', as announced by Amin

AMIN       TANZANIA      KAGERA       INVASION

Forty-one years ago, former Uganda president Idi Amin Dada invaded Tanzania.

Sources in Mwanza and Dar es Salaam claimed that Tanzania government received intelligence reports in advance that Uganda was preparing to invade Tanzania, but nobody took them seriously because it was assumed that Amin's regime was so caught up in internal troubles that he would not dream of invading Tanzania, and that though he repeatedly threatened to bomb Tanzania, he had never carried out his threat.

On one hand, Amin was faced with a clash between him and vice-president Mustafa Adrisi over non-Ugandans in the army, especially Sudanese, while the state of the economy was also so bad and worrying.

 Uganda-Tanzania war frontline at Kyaka on October 30, 1978

October 27, 1978, Amin, leading a 3,000 Ugandan force, invaded Tanzania starting with bombings of Bukop, a few miles from Kyaka.

October 29, 1978, the Ugandan invasion force killed the Tanzanian soldiers guarding the border post and occupied Kagera Salient Tanzania territory, 'within 25 minutes', as announced by Amin. He claimed it was historically part of Uganda and declared it the ninth Province of Uganda. The army raped and looted the entire area of occupation, indiscriminately bombing churches, schools, and a hospital.

Due to poor communication, Dar es Salaam received the full details of the invasion nearly 24 hours after it was completed.

 Binaisa saying farewell to Tanzania officers after the war on July 11, 1979

November 6, 1978, a counter-offensive by Tanzania was scheduled to be launched after President Nyerere declared Tanzania at war with Uganda.

November 20, 1978, Amin withdrew from Tanzania on advice from War Cabinet (formed by him) but maintained a war presence at the border.

The Uganda forces dug in at the border town of Mutukula with an approximate armed force of a full mechanised battalion which move violated the 1973 OAU brokered Uganda-Tanzania Peace Treaty signed in Mogadishu and also threatened Tanzania national security.

Mediation by African leaders, Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire and Jaffer Nimeiri of Sudan weren't fruitful since Tanzania's President Nyerere rejected the move and instead told them to 'cut off supplies to Kampala and to condemn Kampala for its aggression. 

Uganda exile groups, international interest groups including Christians, and countries that wanted Amin out of power were engaged with Tanzania on how to use this opportunity.

November 21, 1978, Tanzania effectively outwitted Ugandan troops. 6000 Tanzanian soldiers faced Amin's troops from the front, while 3000 Zanzibaris entered from the southern part of the Kagera River and launched a massive attack that repulsed the Ugandan troops.

 Tanzanian soldier killed during the war in November 1978

Tanzania government captured Libyans said to be assisting Amin. Cubans and Mozambican FRELIMO allied with Tanzania.

January 1979, Tanzania troops moved to shell the Uganda defense at Mutukula and crossing into Uganda territory on the central (Buganda region) front and the western (Ankole region) front, applying the Chinese extended strategy of large numbers of soldiers over a large area.

Tanzania recalled a militia of 80,000 on top of 50,000 troops in the regular army. The army could safely deploy more than 60,000 troops on both the conventional and Chinese war fronts while Amin's fighting force could afford less than 3,000 troops at both war fronts, which overwhelmed Amin on the battlefield 20:1.

Amin moved to parachute his Commandos behind enemy lines before the battle at Kabuwooko, between Masaka and Kyotera but the paratrooper initiative flopped when on all three occasions the paratrooper advance planes he sent were shot down.

April 11, 1979, Amin was formally ousted from power.

Shortly after Idi Amin had overthrown Milton Obote in 1971, Ugandan exiles in Tanzania opposed Amin's regime and organized his overthrow.

Martin Mwendo, a freedom fighter during the Tanzanian invasion of Uganda, said: Amin's regime was so murderous that it had to be overthrown.

In 1972, the Ugandans who had taken refuge in Tanzania, had to unite to overthrow the regime, but we needed the help of the Tanzanians," says Mwendo.

The Tanzanian government offered training, arms, and ammunition.

 Monument in memory of Tanzania's' servicemen in Kabuwoko

The 1972 invasion
After the training, the Ugandans formed forces, which invaded Uganda in 1972. The invasion was organized by Dr. Milton Obote, the then president of Uganda. Later, FRONASA led by Yoweri Museveni joined the invasion because they had a camp in Bukoba, northern Tanzania.

During the invasion, there were two axes, says Prof. Moses Apedunal a historian at Makerere University. There was the Kyotera-Masaka-Kampala, and the western axis; Mbarara-Fort Portal. FRONASA was given the western axis and Obote's Kikosa Maalum was given Kyotera-Masaka.

Prof. Apedunal said the invasion failed because it was ill-planned.

After the invasion
After the invasion, there were attempts to resolve the rift between Uganda and Tanzania.

Two agreements, the Addis Ababa Accord, and Mogadishu were signed between Uganda and Tanzania. These required the Tanzanian government led by Julius Nyerere to stop helping Ugandans fight Amin, adds Martin Baguma, a history teacher at Busoga College Mwiri.

 Amin displaying arms purported to have been brought in Uganda from Tanzania found in Aroma's place 1978

These agreements halted a further invasion of Uganda.

Amin invading Tanzania
In 1978, when Amin attacked Kagera, the exiles organised meetings under FRONASA and Kikosi Maalum, before the Moshi Conference. The Moshi Conference led to the formation of the Uganda National Liberation Front (UNLF), which formed the government after Amin's ouster, Baguma adds.

The UNLF, supported by the Tanzanian forces invaded Uganda and overthrew Amin in April 1979, says Mwendo. However, they failed to provide a stable government.

It's disintegration led to the 1981-1986 war that brought President Museveni into power, adds Prof. Apedunal.

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On Linkedin: Peter-Rhaina Gwokto (La'Kitgum)

"Even a small dog can piss on a tall building", Jim Hightower

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