Police in Uganda say more than 80 children have been rescued in the past week from several different terrorist recruitment centers throughout the country.
International Christian Concern (ICC) reports local police spokesman Fred Enanga shared the news during a recent press conference.
Enanga explained the rescues were part of a joint effort between the Anti-Terrorism Task Force and the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence. The groups conducted rescue operations in the Kalule-Luwero and Ntoroko districts where 50 children were freed from their captors.
An additional 22 children were recovered last weekend during a raid at a terrorist recruitment home in the Kasengeje-Wakiso district. And authorities rescued another group of 15 children from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel group.
The children reportedly told police that they were being trained to handle weapons and shown how to plant and detonate explosives, according to The Independent.
Police records indicate more than 100 suspects were arrested for allegedly facilitating, financing, and recruiting for ADF.
The ADF terror group, which is affiliated with ISIS, first emerged in Western Uganda, and currently operates out of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Their primary goal is to create an Islamic Caliphate in Central Africa.
ADF is known to kill, kidnap, or displace Christians in DRC and recently conducted four bomb attacks in Uganda’s capital of Kampala.
According to The Independent, the rescued children are safe at area shelters while others have been reunited with their families.
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