The bodies of two Ugandan nationals killed last weekend during a shooting incident while attempting to cross the border to Rwanda at an unapproved point have been repatriated, a police source in the region confirmed Wednesday.
A ceremony took place late Tuesday at Buziba border post between the two countries to repatriate the Ugandan traders who were shot dead by Rwandan police officers on patrol.
According to the Rwandan police, the alleged smugglers became violent and assaulted officers who reacted in self-defense shooting dead two while the rest escaped.
Police reports said the incident occurred on Saturday night at a border post near the Ugandan village of Kiruhura in Rukiga district in the west of the country.
The incident comes amidst strained relations between Kigali and Kampala.
Kigali has accused Kampala of supporting Rwandan rebel groups including the Rwanda National Congress (RNC) and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).
Kampala denies the accusations.
In a related development, another high-level meeting between senior Rwandan and Ugandan officials including top diplomats with heads of security and intelligence scheduled for Wednesday in Kampala has been postponed to 18 November.
Diplomatic officials in Kigali and Kampala did not give reasons for the postponement.
In August this year, – Rwandan President Paul Kagame met his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni in the Angolan capital city Luanda where the two leaders signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at smoothening relations between the two countries.
CU/as/APA