AU warns of LRA resurgence

The African Union says the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebel group led by one of the world's most wanted fugitives could regroup if countries don't ‘urgently’ fill the void after the US and Uganda gave up pursuit of the group. Echoing the US, Uganda's military last month announced it was ending the manhunt and pulling out 1 500 troops because ‘the mission to neutralise the LRA has now been successfully achieved’. As previously reported in Legalbrief Today, the group is led by Joseph Kony, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes. A report on the News24 site notes that the continental body's Peace and Security Council on Friday said the LRA has not yet been eliminated and could ‘rejuvenate itself’. Indicted for killing thousands and kidnapping children to become soldiers and sex slaves, Kony has been Africa's most notorious warlord for three decades. Although scores of LRA fighters have recently surrendered or been killed, the whereabouts of Kony, now in his 50s, remain a mystery.