The General Court Martial has convicted two former Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) recruits, Hamza Lyavaala and Adiil Walusansa, after they pleaded guilty to murder charges arising from a series of alleged fake terror operations in Kampala.
The convictions have brought a new twist to the June 3, 2025 Munyonyo Martyrs Day incident, which initially shocked the country as a suspected ADF suicide-bomb attack but later became part of a wider military intelligence investigation into allegations that some security officers staged terror incidents and used them to obtain operational funds.
The two men were convicted on Monday by a General Court Martial panel chaired by Brigadier General Richard Tukacungurwa. Court heard that Lyavaala and Walusansa, who were working as informers on ADF activities, admitted participating in the planning and execution of the Munyonyo and Kalerwe operations.
They were jointly charged with Lieutenant Colonel Ephraim Byaruhanga, who has pleaded not guilty and remains before court.
How the Munyonyo operation unfolded
The Munyonyo incident happened on the morning of June 3, 2025, as Uganda marked Martyrs Day, one of the country’s biggest religious events.
Thousands of pilgrims had travelled to different Catholic and Anglican shrines to commemorate the Christian converts killed in the late 19th century.
At Munyonyo, security agencies were already on high alert because of intelligence warnings about possible attacks.
According to the UPDF’s account at the time, security personnel intercepted a woman suspected of carrying explosives as she travelled on a motorcycle towards the Munyonyo Martyrs Shrine. The woman was identified by security as Aisha Katushabe, also known by aliases including Byaruhanga Sumayya and Kabonesa.
The explosion occurred about 600 metres from the intended target, according to the army.
Both the woman and the motorcycle rider died when the explosives detonated. The initial security narrative was that the operation had prevented a much larger terrorist attack on pilgrims.
Col Chris Magezi, the acting Defence public information officer, said the suspected bomber was intercepted during an intelligence-led operation and that the explosives went off during the confrontation. The army said preliminary investigations pointed to ADF involvement.
Witnesses described scenes of panic as the blast ripped through the area.
A motorcycle carrying a man and woman had been seen heading towards the shrine shortly before the explosion. The blast sent people running and security forces quickly cordoned off the area as investigators recovered evidence and human remains.
At the time, the incident appeared to fit into a familiar pattern of ADF-linked terrorism threats in Uganda. But subsequent investigations dramatically changed the picture.
From terror attack to alleged fake operation
What initially looked like an attempted suicide bombing became one of the central incidents in an investigation into alleged fabricated intelligence within Uganda’s military intelligence establishment.
Investigators began examining the circumstances surrounding the Munyonyo explosion alongside another incident at Kalerwe.
The Kalerwe operation involved another alleged suicide bomber who was shot dead during a security operation. Investigators later questioned whether the people presented as terrorists were actually part of a genuine ADF attack or had been drawn into an operation allegedly created by security personnel.
According to investigators, civilians and junior soldiers helped trace the motorcycles used by the alleged bombers. The investigation subsequently moved up the chain of command, leading to the arrest of senior officers within the former Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI), now known as the Directorate of Intelligence and Security.
The probe was eventually expanded beyond Munyonyo and Kalerwe to other suspicious bomb incidents dating back several years, including cases in Bunamwaya, Komamboga, Wobulenzi and elsewhere. Investigators reportedly examined as many as 27 suspicious bomb incidents.
The role of Byaruhanga
Lt Col Ephraim Byaruhanga is alleged to have occupied an important position in the intelligence structure at the centre of the investigation.
He was reportedly the head of Special Operations at CMI and was among the senior officers arrested after investigators began following the chain of command from the alleged operations back to their organisers. Col Peter Ahimbisibwe, then CMI director of counter-terrorism, was also arrested during the probe.
Byaruhanga is now jointly charged with Lyavaala and Walusansa in the murder case. Unlike the two former ADF recruits, however, Byaruhanga has denied the charges.
This distinction is important because Monday’s conviction does not mean that Byaruhanga has been found guilty. His case remains before the court and the prosecution must still prove the allegations against him.
Why the former CMI boss became entangled
The investigation also reached the highest levels of military intelligence, leading to the arrest of Major General James Birungi, the former CMI chief.
Birungi was arrested in August 2025 after being removed from the intelligence command structure. He was later arraigned before the General Court Martial.
However, contrary to some descriptions of the case, Birungi has not been convicted of the Munyonyo murders. He has been charged separately with treachery and offences relating to insecurity, with the prosecution alleging that he was connected to the wider production or use of false intelligence.
The significance of his case lies in the alleged chain of command. Investigators believe the Munyonyo and Kalerwe incidents were not simply isolated actions by the two convicted men or junior operatives. The inquiry instead examined whether intelligence officers used informers and soldiers to manufacture terror incidents, create the appearance of an ADF threat and justify the release of operational resources.
That investigation brought Birungi, Byaruhanga and other senior intelligence officers into the case.
Reports at the time said the CDF, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, ordered a wider probe after suspicions emerged that some terror incidents had been staged. The investigation subsequently drew in officers who had served in intelligence, counter-terrorism and special operations.
A major reversal for the original narrative
The Munyonyo case therefore represents a dramatic reversal. On June 3, 2025, Ugandans were told that security forces had intercepted suspected ADF terrorists and prevented a devastating attack on Martyrs Day pilgrims.
More than a year later, the General Court Martial has convicted two men who participated in the operation, after they admitted their role in the events.
The prosecution case now presents the incident not simply as an ADF attack but as part of a much broader alleged scheme involving intelligence operatives and military personnel. The deaths remain central to the murder charges.
The prosecution alleges that Sumayiya Baruhanga, the woman carrying the explosives at Munyonyo, the boda boda rider accompanying her, and Sawiya, who was shot dead during the Kalerwe operation, died as a consequence of the alleged operations.
For Lyavaala and Walusansa, their guilty pleas have now resulted in convictions. For Byaruhanga and the other senior officers implicated in the wider intelligence scandal, however, the legal battle is far from over.
The case has consequently moved from the question of who was behind an alleged ADF terror attack to the much more troubling question of whether some of the people tasked with protecting Uganda from terrorism were themselves involved in creating the appearance of terror.
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