William Bionx Akena, Uganda-CAN correspondent in Gulu town, reports -

Three UPDF soldiers from Mucwini detach in Kitgum district on Sunday night beat a man to death.

Kitgum Resident District Commissioner Lt. Santos Okot Lapolo has confirmed this to Uganda-CAN, saying the three soldiers who beat the man have been arrested by the army and are now in police custody. The man killed was identified as Odong Mark of Mucwini IDP camp.

Northern Army spokesman Captain Paddy Ankunda confirmed this to Uganda-CAN this morning from his Gulu office, saying the circumstances that led to the man’s death are still being investigated by the army. He defended the integrity of the Ugandan military, noting that the institution does not accept such behavior and that the guilty parties would be prosecuted and punished for their acts.

Human rights violations committed by military forces have led to increased tensions in the region and have exacerbated grievances of northern people against their government, which is perceived as not fulfilling its responsibility to protect civilian life.

President Museveni has phoned Sudanese President Bashir to request that Ugandan defense forces be allowed to pursue the LRA north of Juba town, beyond the previously-agreed territory, reports the Daily Monitor.

“As I speak today, Kony has been thoroughly defeated and his group in Uganda killed,” Museveni said. Although he has reported the LRA defeated on numerous occasions in the past, Kony and the rebel group has remained elusive.

Museveni was speaking at a commissioning ceremony for more than 200 new officers, including several former LRA fighters who joined the Ugandan military.