The Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), previously known as the National Resistance Army, is the armed forces of Uganda. From 2007 to 2011, the International Institute for Strategic Studies estimated the UPDF had a total strength of 40,000–45,000, consisting of land forces and an air wing. Recruitment to the forces is done annually.
Tororo is a town in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Tororo District.
The Tanzania People’s Defence Force (TPDF) is the military force of the United Republic of Tanzania. It was established in September 1964, following a mutiny by the former colonial military force, the Tanganyika Rifles. From its inception, it was ingrained in the troops of the new TPDF that they were a people's force under civilian control. Unlike some of its neighbouring countries, Tanzania has never suffered a coup d'état or civil war.
The Uganda–Tanzania War, known in Tanzania as the Kagera War and in Uganda as the 1979 Liberation War, was fought between Uganda and Tanzania from October 1978 until June 1979 and led to the overthrow of Ugandan President Idi Amin. The war was preceded by a deterioration of relations between Uganda and Tanzania following Amin's 1971 overthrow of President Milton Obote, who was close to the President of Tanzania, Julius Nyerere. Over the following years, Amin's regime was destabilised by violent purges, economic problems, and dissatisfaction in the Uganda Army.
The Battle of Lukaya was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War. It was fought on 10 and 11 March 1979 around Lukaya, Uganda, between Tanzanian forces and Ugandan government forces. After briefly occupying the town, Tanzanian troops and Ugandan rebels retreated under artillery fire. The Tanzanians subsequently launched a counterattack, retaking Lukaya and killing hundreds of Libyans and Ugandans.
The Battle of Entebbe was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place on 7 April 1979 on the Entebbe peninsula in Uganda between Tanzanian units and Ugandan and Libyan units. The Tanzanians occupied the area, killed hundreds of Libyans, and ended the Libyan airlift in support of the Ugandan government.
The Battle of Tororo was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place from 2 to 4 March 1979 at Tororo, Uganda and its surroundings. It was fought between Ugandan rebels loyal to Milton Obote and Uganda Army units loyal to President Idi Amin. In an attempt to destabilise Amin's rule and capture weapons for an insurrection, a group of guerrillas launched a raid from Kenya against Tororo, whose garrison partially mutinied and joined them after a brief fight. Loyalist Ugandan military forces, most importantly its air force, launched a large-scale counter-attack and defeated the rebels after heavy fighting.
The Battle of Lira was one of the last battles in the Uganda–Tanzania War, fought by Tanzania and its Uganda National Liberation Front (UNLF) allies, against Uganda Army troops loyal to Idi Amin on 15 May 1979. The Tanzanian-led forces easily routed Lira's garrison of Amin loyalists, and then intercepted and destroyed one retreating column of Uganda Army soldiers near the town.
The Battle of Jinja was a battle of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place on 22 April 1979 near and in the city of Jinja, Uganda between Tanzanian and allied Uganda National Liberation Front forces on the one hand, and Ugandan troops loyal to Idi Amin on the other. The Tanzanians and the UNLF men met slight resistance and captured Owen Falls Dam and the town of Jinja.
Ali Muhammed Kiiza is a retired Ugandan Major General, in the UPDF Air Force, who serves as a Senior Military Adviser to the President of Uganda. Prior to that, he served as the Chief Pilot to six Heads of State in the Government of Uganda, from 1973 until 2012.
The Battle of Karuma Falls was one of the last battles in the Uganda–Tanzania War, fought between Tanzania and Uganda Army troops loyal to Idi Amin on 17 May 1979. Soldiers of the Tanzania People's Defence Force attacked Ugandan forces at the bridge over the Nile River at Karuma Falls. Tanzania's 205th Brigade was tasked with advancing from Masindi to Gulu, taking a route which passed over the Karuma Falls Bridge. The brigade assaulted the crossing on the morning of 17 May with tanks and artillery and one of its battalions ran over the bridge to attack the Ugandan positions. The Ugandans destroyed a TPDF tank, delaying the Tanzanians long enough to board buses and retreat to Gulu. The Tanzanians secured Karuma Falls before capturing Gulu several days later.
The Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79 included an air campaign, as the air forces of Uganda and Tanzania battled for air superiority and launched bombing raids. In general, the conflict was focused on air-to-ground attacks and ground-based anti-aircraft fire; only one dogfight is known to have occurred.
The Battle of Simba Hills or Battle of Kakuuto was a conflict of the Uganda–Tanzania War that took place over several days in mid-February 1979 around the Simba Hills in southern Uganda, near the town of Kakuuto. Tanzanian troops advanced over the Ugandan border and assaulted the Ugandans' positions, forcing them to retreat.
Andrew Joet Mukooza was a Ugandan military officer who served as the last head of the Uganda Army Air Force before its destruction during the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79. Born in eastern Uganda, Mukooza joined the air force during the presidency of Milton Obote. In 1971, army commander Idi Amin assumed power in Uganda. Mukooza stayed firmly loyal to Amin's regime, and consequently rose in the ranks. He possibly helped Amin to defeat a coup attempt in 1977, drawing the ire of Uganda's opposition. When the Uganda–Tanzania War broke out, Mukooza initially flew missions as fighter pilot and became head of the Uganda Army Air Force when the latter began to disintegrate amid combat losses, defections, and desertions. Following the defeat of Amin, Mukooza surrendered to the new Tanzanian-backed government of Uganda, but was murdered under uncertain circumstances.
The Uganda Army, also known as Uganda Armed Forces, served as the national armed forces of Uganda during the dictatorship of Idi Amin (1971–1979). It mostly collapsed during the Uganda–Tanzania War, but remnants continued to operate in exile from 1979. These pro-Amin rebel forces continued to be called the "Uganda Army" and maintained a semblance of cohesion until 1980, when they fully fractured into rival factions.
The Uganda Army, also known as the Uganda Rifles, served as the national armed forces of Uganda during the presidencies of Mutesa II and Milton Obote. As time went on, the military was gradually expanded and increasingly interfered in Uganda's national politics. It played a prominent role in defeating local insurgencies, suppressing opposition to Obote, and intervened in conflicts in the Congo as well as Sudan. Dissatisfied soldiers overthrew Obote in 1971, resulting in the establishment of the Second Republic of Uganda under the dictatorship of army commander Idi Amin. The Uganda Army was purged, with thousands of suspected pro-Obote troops killed or fleeing the country. The military was consequently split into an army serving under Amin – the Uganda Army (1971–1980) – and exiled rebel factions. The latter helped to overthrow Amin's regime during the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79, and became the core of the Uganda National Liberation Army which would serve as Uganda's national military from 1980 to 1986.
Godwin Sule was a high-ranking Sudanese-born Ugandan military officer who held important commands in the Uganda Army during the dictatorship of President Idi Amin. A native of southern Sudan, he fought as a rebel in the First Sudanese Civil War before migrating to Uganda. There he rose to command the Malire Battalion and later the Paratroopers Military School. Regarded as one of the most talented soldiers in the Uganda Army during Amin's rule, Sule was tasked with leading the last major Ugandan counter-offensive during the Uganda–Tanzania War of 1978–79. This operation culminated in the Battle of Lukaya of 10–11 March 1979, during which Sule was killed under unclear and disputed circumstances. His death resulted in the collapse of the Ugandan offensive, contributing to the eventual overthrow of Amin's regime.
Yorokamu Tizihwayo, also known as Y. Tiziriwayho and Yerukamu, was a Ugandan military officer. He served as a high-ranking commander during Idi Amin's rule as Ugandan President, first as the head of the 2nd Paratrooper Battalion and later for the Western Brigade. In the Uganda–Tanzania War (1978–1979), Tizihwayo led the Uganda Army troops which opposed the Tanzania People's Defence Force's advance into western Uganda. Despite being regarded as a talented soldier and considered one of the Tanzanians' more dangerous opponents during the war, he was eventually arrested and executed on alleged treason charges by Amin's State Research Bureau.
The Western Uganda campaign of 1979 was a military operation by Tanzanian forces and allied Ugandan rebels, mainly the Front for National Salvation (FRONASA), against Uganda Army (UA) troops loyal to Ugandan President Idi Amin during the Uganda–Tanzania War. The operation was launched by the Tanzania People's Defence Force's (TPDF) "Task Force", consisting of two brigades, in February 1979 to cover the Tanzanians' western axis of advance into Uganda. After securing the important city of Mbarara against Uganda Army counter-attacks, the TPDF Task Force captured several cities as well as the Kilembe Mines in the Rwenzori Mountains. These operations coincided with an expansion of the separatist Rwenzururu movement, a rebel group that exploited the collapse of the Uganda Army along the Uganda-Zaire border to secure territory and weaponry for itself. From the Rwenzori Mountains, the Task Force advanced to Hoima; there, it combined forces with another Tanzanian force, the 205th Brigade. Together, the TPDF formations advanced to Masindi, capturing it after a battle south of the city. With western Uganda largely under Tanzanian control, the Task Force and 205th Brigade subsequently split up again to capture northwestern and north-central Uganda.
Bernard Rwehururu was a Ugandan military officer and author. He served in various Ugandan militaries from 1965 until 2013, including under the governments of Milton Obote, Idi Amin, Tito Okello, and Yoweri Museveni.
Uganda 
