The Ugandan military said on Monday that the leader of rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) Joseph Kony still has a chance to sign a final peace deal with the government despite a military offensive on his hideout.
"He still has a chance, we have an agreement that is ready for him to sign. The problem is he has been refusing to sign it," Maj.Paddy Ankunda, the Ugandan army spokesman told Xinhua in an interview.
Military forces from Uganda, southern Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) launched an attack on Sunday on Kony's base in Garamba forest in northeastern DR Congo.
The joint operation, which entered the second day on Monday, was prompted by Kony's repeated refusal to sign a final peace agreement the rebel group negotiated with government for over two years.
"We are still interested, we are still focused on rescuing women and children that are held captive by the LRA," Ankunda said, expressing the army's determination to continue carrying out the offensive.
He said Joachim Chissano, UN Special Envoy to the LRA affected areas, will brief the UN Security Council on Tuesday about the peace process and the joint military offensive.
The LRA's over two decade long insurgency has left tens of thousands of people dead and about 2 million homeless in northern .The rebel group has carried out similar attacks in southern Sudan, DR Cong and Central African Republic, killing civilians and abducting children.
Source:Xinhua
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