Military Court charges Besigye with treachery

A Ugandan Military Court has ruled that prominent opposition figure Kizza Besigye can be tried on the charge of treachery, for which he could face the death penalty if convicted, reports Al Jazeera. The ruling last Tuesday escalates the legal trouble Besigye faces in the run-up to Presidential elections scheduled for 2026. Besigye, who has contested the Presidency four times, went missing in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on 16 November. Days later, he and his co-accused, an assistant named Obeid Lutale, appeared before a Military Court in Kampala, the Ugandan capital. Besigye was charged with illegal possession of a firearm and a charge relating to the alleged solicitation of military support overseas in order to destabilise national security. The opposition leader, who denied the charges, has since been remanded in custody. A military prosecutor amended the charge sheet to include treachery and introduced a third suspect, who is a serving army officer. Besigye has faced arrest and assault many times in his political career. But he has never been convicted of a crime.

Full Al Jazeera report