Rwandan security agents have shot and wounded three smugglers suspected of crossing the border illegally from Uganda at an unapproved point while the rest escaped.
The incident in Burera, a district in northern Rwanda took place early on Wednesday, a senior local administrative official confirmed to APA.
It comes amidst strained relations between Rwanda and Uganda which began in February over economic and political disagreements.
The Executive Secretary of Cyanika sector, Amani Wilson Mwambutsa near the border with Uganda, confirmed to APA that three wounded men were taken to a nearby hospital and are expected to survive their wounds.
Earlier this month, two Ugandan traders who were shot dead by Rwandan police officers on patrol while attempting to cross the border to Rwanda at an unapproved point at Nyagatare a district with a highly porous entry point which mostly used by small-scale traders, from both sides of the border.
In a similar incident, two people were killed in May this year during a shooting incident while attempting to cross the border from Uganda at an unapproved point.
Reports said the incident occurred during the night after Rwandan security forces on patrol intercepted a suspected smuggler on a motorcycle who had crossed the border from Uganda.
During the shooting incident, a Ugandan and Rwandan citizen were killed.
Smuggling has been described as a highly profitable business in the border region between Rwanda and Uganda.
The incident comes after Immigration authorities in Rwanda deported earlier this week three Ugandans for illegally entering the country.
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.
In a statement issued at the end of their meeting that was also witnessed by the leaders of Angola João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, Felix Tshisekedi of DR Congo, and Congo’s Denis Sassou Nguesso, “the summit welcomed the political will of (Rwanda and Uganda) to continue dialogue with a view to finding a solution to existing problems.”
The authorities in Kampala were accused of hosting, sponsoring, and abetting armed militias – more specifically the Rwanda National Congress (RNC) and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) who are waging a war on the government in Kigali.
Kampala denies the accusations.
CU/as/APA