Uganda authorities reported that at least three residents were killed while dozens of others were injured after suicide bombers riding motorbikes targeted the region's capital Kampala and police headquarters.
Officials are expecting the number of dead victims to increase as the powerful blasts sent human body parts flying across streets in the area. After the horrific attack, the Islamic State (IS) group took responsibility for the blasts that killed residents at the scene of the incident.
IS Suicide Bombers
Each of the explosions came within three minutes of each other and officials discovered more bombs in several other parts of the city. Fred Enanga, a spokesman for the police, said that bomb threats in the area were still active and that they were especially cautious of other suicide bombers.
Police officials said that they believed there were still more suicide bombers lurking in the area, including the suicide bomb squad members created by the ADF. Authorities were able to arrest a fourth attacker who was found with an explosive vest. Officials said that two of the victims that were killed by the blasts were police officers, BBC reported.
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Media outlets broadcasted scenes from the area of the blasts that showed bloodied office workers running from the sites of the explosions. Officials reported that the powerful blasts occurred after 10:00 a.m., causing residents to empty the streets of Kampala in fear for their lives.
The bombings mark the latest attacks in a series of deadly assaults in Uganda that were the works of regional terrorist groups. An explosion on Oct. 23 targeted a restaurant in a Kampala suburb and killed one resident and injured seven others. After two days, a suicide bomber triggered his bombs inside a bus but only killed himself.
The ADF, also known as the Allied Democratic Forces, is an Islamist group that was founded in Uganda but have extended their reach and now mainly operates in remote areas of the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. In recent years, a cooperative effort between Ugandan forces was able to suppress the militant group's activity in the country, the Washington Post reported.
Uganda's Predicament
Enanga said that a team of forensic experts were still trying to document the scene of the blasts and had not yet given a finalized number of victims. Police said that CCTV footage captured the moment an adult male carrying a backpack detonated a bomb he had on himself at 10:03 a.m. near the Central Police Station.
The other two suicide bombers who were riding motorbikes triggered their explosives near Raja Chambers and Jubilee Insurance Building along the central Kampala Parliament Avenue. In a Twitter post, Ugandan state minister Kabbyanga Godfrey Baluku Kiime announced the events of the explosions on the social media platform.
Enanga urged the public to remain aware and vigilant because of the potential threat of active bombers. Kampala residents struggled with traffic in the area following the blasts, with officials telling people to temporarily close down their businesses and leave the area, CNN reported.
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