On June 3, two suspected Islamist terrorists were shot dead as they neared a memorial in Kampala, Uganda, where Christians had gathered to honor martyred believers. The individuals were traveling on a motorcycle near the Munyonyo Martyrs’ Shrine, which commemorates Christians who were killed for their faith in the nineteenth century. They were "intercepted and neutralized" by a Ugandan army counter-terrorism unit, according to military spokesman Chris Magezi. He also noted that one of the deceased was a female suicide bomber carrying "powerful explosives."
The explosive devices carried by the bomber are thought to have detonated during the operation, resulting in the deaths of both her and the motorcycle driver. The two terrorists are said to have connections to the Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP), previously known as the Allied Democratic Forces, which operates out of the nearby Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 2023, ISCAP was responsible for a massacre at a Christian boarding school in western Uganda and attempted to bomb several churches in various Ugandan cities.
Martyrs’ Day is a national holiday in Uganda that commemorates 45 Christians who were killed between 1885 and 1887 for standing firm in their faith and refusing to return to their traditional beliefs. It remains uncertain whether the terrorists aimed at the Munyonyo memorial or the main celebrations in Namugongo, located 18 miles away, which were attended by President Yoweri Museveni.
