Operation Lightning Thunder: The Unholy Alliance Revealed

You know ligtning and thunder?

No, not the natural phenomena. Operation Lightning Thunder, I mean.

lra-chopper2 Operation Lighting Thunder; that million dollar military offensive conducted by the Ugandan, South Sudan and Congolese forces.

Operation Lightning Thunder; that intended to bombard Joseph Kony’s camp, scare the bejesus out of the Lord’s Resistance Army and force them to their knees in surrender.

Operation Lighting Thunder; that which did succeed in scattering the LRA, but pushed them into civilian populations in the Democratic Republic of Congo where they have killed, abducted, mained and displaced thousands.

Turns out Uganda isn’t fully to blame for the kafuffle that is Operation Lightning Thunder. We went for help to the one country whose foreign military exploits in the past decade have been … how to say this … flawed? Failed?

“U.S. Aided a Failed Plan to Rout Ugandan Rebels” the New York Times reports today.

The article available, online here, says the American military helped to plan and pay for the attack on the LRA. Senior American military officials said a team of 17 advisers and analysts from the Pentagon’s Africa Command worked closely with Ugandan officers on the mission, providing satellite phones, intelligence and one million dollars in fuel.

According to the New York Times no American forces ever got involved in the ground fighting.

This is how the partnership between the Uganda and the U.S, worked:

The Ugandan government asked the American Embassy in Kampala for help.
The request was sent up the chain of command in November to President Bush
President Bush (oh, help!) personally authorized it
The American advisers and Ugandan officers used satellite imagery and Ugandan field intelligence reports to triangulate where they believed Mr. Kony and his fighters were hiding.
On December 13, the day before the attack, several American advisers traveled to a staging site near the Uganda-Congo border for a final coordination meeting.

The rest, we know. Something about fog, losing the element of surprise and the UPDF bombing of a totally empty camp. The LRA, to prove their ‘strength’, kill 150 people on Christmas day. In one town they ate the villagers’ Christmas feast and then dozed among the corpses.

We just don’t learn, do we?

About these ads

Posted on February 7, 2009 at 11:29 am in LRA, Uganda | RSS feed | Respond | Trackback URL

22 Responses to “Operation Lightning Thunder: The Unholy Alliance Revealed”

Kaza
February 7, 2009 at 12:11 pm

The U.S indeed has the means to fight wars. I have often wondered why Uganda does not just seek help. In fact,it was one of my arguments for why I insist that the Government did not care enough! The implementation was poor but hopefully we have learnt and attack better next time. Unless of course the plan was to simply drive the LRA further from Uganda!
Are you against the idea of involving the U.S?

Reply
tumwijuke
February 7, 2009 at 12:29 pm

@Kaza … are you kidding me? Let’s see. U.S. in Afghanistan; success? The jury’s still out. U.S. in Iraq; success? Ahem. U.S. in Vietnam? Somalia? (I can still hear the soundtrack from the movie Black Hawk Down.)

Am I against the idea of involving the U.S.? Are you kidding me?

Of course Uganda needs help to deal with Kony. Of course. We need all the help we can get.

However Operation Lightning Thunder is proof that a full blown jungle war on a guerilla force mastered which the art of wilderness-based terrorism is folly. After its failures in Mogadishu with the warlords and its struggle against the Taliban in the Afghan mountains … Sure, we need U.S. money to fund our fight against terrorism, but like this?

And, and, and … what did the U.S. give the UPDF? Satellite phones, fuel and ‘intelligence’. Dear God! The same ‘intelligence’ that swore there were WMDs in Iraq?

Am I against the idea of involving the U.S.? Are you kidding me?

For the record, I have no intelligent suggestions regarding the LRA. I know I can’t justify the killing of close to 900 Congolese civilians, the abduction of women and children and the displacement of thousands just because we wanted to prove a point.

I’m coming up empty here.

Reply
kaza
February 7, 2009 at 12:47 pm

Lol! Clearly I am kidding you. O.k, granted, the U.S does have a terrible track record. I’m sure the help comes with strings and conditions.Dictating how, when and where! Eh, you have to pity our government, on the one hand we do need help, which is not easy to find. On the other, the help we do get, is… the U.S. I too have nothing intelligent to say about LRA. Who aided the Angolan government to capture Savimbi?

Reply
kaza
February 7, 2009 at 12:54 pm

No actually, I do not “pity” the government, there is simply no justification for the attrocities in Congo!I am so going to carry placards that say we need change when the time comes!

Reply
Baz
February 7, 2009 at 4:19 pm

I’m going to chalk this up to bad luck. We shot, we missed. Besides, the US military has carried out very many military operations of differing scale over the years. They don’t all fail.

Reply
Baz
February 7, 2009 at 4:30 pm

Although now that i have actually read the article linked, I know see that we could have planned it better.

Reply
Rachel
February 8, 2009 at 1:25 am

One thing that Bush and M7 have in common is their idea of boosting the economy through military industrialism. I think the point of Lightening Thunder may have been to stimulate the war machine, create some jobs, and boost the floundering economy. And Bush would have understood that desire.

Reply
gloria
February 8, 2009 at 1:58 am

Oi! Fog foiled the operation? Snark Snark! Really? Ok, so you can bomb a city thousands of miles a way but a little fog and oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo all of a sudden where?! THERE!!! WHERE?!?!?

KABLOOIE

KABLAM!

Damnit, Frogger One, Frogger One, come in.

This is Frogger One reporting Commander.

What the eff happened Frogger one?

Um….

Goddamnit Frogger One! What the eff happened out there?

Sir, Operation Thunderstorm…

You mean Lightning Thunder!

Sorry Sir! Lighting Thunder.

Yes Sergeant?

Operation Thu… Lightning Thunder was a success sir.

(Hurrah’s heard in the background)

Just one thing Sir.

Yes Sergeant?

The camp was empty!

What was that Frogger One?

The camp was empty Commander Sir.

(Commander looks around surreptitiously and then whispers under his breath)

Well, get out of there son, screw these guys! We’re going home!

What was that sir?

I said screw these east African guys, we’ve done what we can, we’re going home ALIVE!

Copy that sir. Frogger One out!

Reply
- Verbose
  March 11, 2012 at 12:44 pm
  
  i love your rerun of the situation
  
  Reply
Peter Eichstaedt
February 8, 2009 at 5:32 pm

This marks the beginning of a new and perhaps dreadful era of U.S. military involvement in Africa.

Reply
Eizzy
February 9, 2009 at 10:51 am

I agree with rachel…

Kaza, i am sure if we wanted to stop the LRA and war in the north we would. Like you mentioned, they dont really care…too many people are gaining from it to end it, i mean, one million dollars in fuel?? 4real?
Its like how that US Aid never reaches the people, never has any tangible effects, but we are always applying for it…

Reply
Scott Morgan
February 12, 2009 at 9:36 pm

It seems that the efforts to stop the LRA has turned into a Dr. Strangelove type scenario. A Comedy of Errors that follows proceedure.

Having the US Military take any steps in Africa is bound to be criticized in one form or another. What ever support the US has given the UPDF has not been adequate. But the UPDF Contingent smacks of cronyism.

There is ample Grass Roots here in the US for a Solution to this crisis.

Reply
GlobalWitness
February 27, 2009 at 6:58 pm

Wow, you guys are great to read. Most Americans have a very one-dimensional view of this crisis. I think of the 900 Congolese or so killed and wonder that the DRC govt. has done for the families of these people.

I agree with Rachel as well, who said:

“One thing that Bush and M7 have in common is their idea of boosting the economy through military industrialism. I think the point of Lightening Thunder may have been to stimulate the war machine, create some jobs, and boost the floundering economy.”

There’s a lot of historial evidence that points to this as well. Also, a foray into the Congo is also an opportunity to loot whatever is there once more. Uganda was itching to join the gang of militias currently plundering away.

Also, Obama is pro-AFRICOM, so we shall see how AFRICOM’s first very public disaster impacts its visibility in the region.

The US might as well admit it wants Uganda’s Oil, Gold, Copper and Uranium.

See a Knol here: http://knol.google.com/k/global-witness/acholi-land-oil-and-operation-lightning/28zubz7a6mpjy/1?path_author=global-witness&path_title=acholi-land-oil-and-operation-lightning#view

And Scott Morgan, I’m sure you’ve seen some of the U.S. solutions being advocated for by Washington Uganda Lobbyists – they are advocating for war and increased military intervention. Somehow the call for peace was abandoned. Resolve and Enough! released a statement recently with their wishes for increased funding. So give Museveni more money, it’s his birthday every time Americans start raising money to “save Africa”

As far as help – Israel has offered help. But then Israel offers everyone help. Including Idi Amin – Can you imagine Israel was the first state Amin visited when he came to power…

And so it goes.

Just remember the very real African people who are being decimated throughout all of this. And remember the babies and children with the LRA. Surely the number of babies killed by bombs will never be counted.

Reply
Dom
December 22, 2009 at 4:43 pm

Many of the views and comments expressed above are indeed empty.. they ( though not all) show little if any real understanding of the political situation within the involved countries simply passing off opinions about complex relationships with little backing or support. It is clear many of you have never been to this part of the world or understand the conflict but still pass judgement from the western world at your mac’s.. stop looking at this issue from the point of view of the U.S and you may become more enlightened.

Respect to all of those who have lost their lives to the regime of LRA.

Reply
Kalashnikov
June 27, 2010 at 8:18 pm

I disagree with 4 blaming d u.s for trying to exploiting uganda’s resources all they are trying to do is help.

Reply
Bush George
March 5, 2011 at 11:18 pm

Just nuke the place no one would even know its gone hahaha!

Reply
open your eyes
March 2, 2012 at 1:24 am

and what do other countries do for eachother? nothing? at least we give a damn about other people and try our best to help them so that in our day of need we have people to rely on? what about humanity? friendship? any morals at all?

Reply
algreat
March 10, 2012 at 12:16 am

Uganda be kidding me

Reply
Jhm
August 4, 2012 at 6:24 am

You should read Lawrence Anthony’s book “The Last Rhinos”. He had some very interesting insight into the LRA vs. Museveni(Uganda). Everything isn’t what it seems.

Reply
- tumwijuke
  August 16, 2012 at 4:12 pm
  
  Thanks for the recommendation.
  
  Reply