Major Bilal Katamba, the spokesperson for Uganda’s military operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), said about 20 to 25 rebels attacked the Lhubirira secondary school in Mpondwe between 11 p.m. and midnight on Friday, killing 26 students and injuring eight before lighting the school on fire.
The school is situated along Uganda’s border with Congo.
Authorities were still trying to extinguish the fire by Saturday morning. The military suspects more dead bodies may be found, but said there was no one still alive trapped in the school.
The military is pursuing the suspects in the DRC and believes they are headed towards the Virunga National Park, the major said.
Armed rebels of the ADF, which has ties to ISIS, attacked the school in Mpondwe on Friday night, police have said.
“A dormitory was burnt and a food store looted,” Uganda Police Force Spokesperson Fred Enanga said on Twitter, adding that the bodies had been transferred to Bwera Hospital.
The eight injured are in critical condition at Bwera Hospital, he added.
The spokesperson said that Ugandan Police and the Uganda People’s Defense Force were in “hot pursuit” of the suspects.
