Is This a Sign Joseph Kony Is Weakening?

He promotes son to deputy leader of Lord's Resistance Army
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted May 19, 2014 8:23 AM CDT
Is This a Sign Joseph Kony Is Weakening?
In this Nov. 12, 2006 photo, the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, Joseph Kony, answers journalists' questions following a meeting with the UN humanitarian chief at Ri-Kwangba in southern Sudan.   (AP Photo/Stuart Price, File, Pool)

Joseph Kony has named his 22-year-old son as deputy leader of his Lord's Resistance Army—and top Ugandan general Sam Kavuma says the move is a sign that Kony's control over the guerrilla force is weakening. Fighters have separated into different autonomous groups roaming across remote parts of Africa, and "the role of the son is an indication Kony has lost contact with most of his commanders, some who have been killed by our forces and others are in disarray, with the rebels becoming weaker," Kavuma says, according to AFP.

Salim Saleh is said to have spent his life fighting with his father's violent rebel forces. "Previously the son was in charge of the group providing security to the father, but now he has an added responsibility of field command," Kavuma says. The LRA continues to evade Ugandan troops and US special forces attempting to hunt it down. In November, there were reports Kony was ill and his reign might be nearing an end. In a report last week, the UN said Kony is hiding in a Sudanese-controlled area of the disputed border between South Sudan and the Central African Republic, al-Jazeera reports, and Voice of America adds that a UN official predicted Kony's capture is "coming pretty soon." (More Joseph Kony stories.)

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