Massive Uganda police deployment for weekend match

(AFP) – 2 days ago
KAMPALA — Ugandan police on Thursday said they would deploy 4,000 officers for a weekend African Cup of Nations qualifier with Kenya because of threats of an attack by Somalia’s Al-Qaeda affiliated Shebab.
Kampala Metropolitan Police director Andrew Kaweesa said the officers would be stationed in and around the city’s 42,000-capacity Namboole stadium for the Saturday match.
“We are deploying 4,000 uniformed officers around the stadium. Apart from the crowd control, there are threats from Al Shebab terrorists who may take advantage of the huge numbers,” Kaweesa told AFP.
“The stakes are high and we are on terror alert before, during and after the match,” he said, adding that 1,200 police officers in uniform would be inside the stadium in addition to special units and others in plain clothes.
“The security around the stadium is going to be tighter than ever before. Sister security agencies will also be deployed to beef up the police,” Kaweesa added. “The public is encouraged to cooperate with security.”
The Shebab claimed responsibility for the July 2010 twin suicide bombings on Kampala bars packed with fans watching the World Cup final, killing at least 76 people.
They said the attack was in revenge for Uganda’s troop contribution for the African Union force protecting Somalia’s transitional government that the Shebab are fighting.
On Tuesday, the Shebab said they were behind a massive truck bomb that killed more than 70 people in Mogadishu, their deadliest attack in years, and vowed more attacks.