Lt. Joe Walusimbi, the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) – Kasese, has suggested that the bodies of victims of the Lhubiriha Secondary School attack be buried in separate graves to allow exhumation in case relatives are identified in the near future.
“We shall bury these bodies temporarily until their samples match relatives; we call upon parents to keep going for DNA until their relatives have been identified,” Walusimbi said.
SP Nelson Tumushime Police spokesperson, Rwenzori East region, said that the samples of four bodies failed to match those provided by relatives, which has forced the police to withhold onto the bodies until now, when they will be buried temporarily.
“It is so frustrating to fail to match the bodies, 13 bodies out of 17 were successfully matched with their families and handed over to their families for decent burial, but numerous efforts to match the remaining bodies with their relatives have failed,” SP Tumushime said.
Police has urged leaders in the district to cooperate with security agencies to ensure that the unidentified bodies are given a decent and appropriate burial.
According to the police, the attack on the school was carried out by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), on the night of June 16, 2023. Resulting in the deaths of 43 people, some were slaughtered and others burnt to death, where DNA had to be applied to identify some of the bodies.
