On Monday, heavily armed soldiers from Uganda’s Special Forces Command—which report directly to Kainerubaga—broke into the residence of Lukwago, a former mayor of the capital Kampala and acting leader of the People’s Front for Freedom opposition party, and violently forced him into a van that took him to an unknown location.

Subsequently, Kainerubaga made a post on X bragging that he had “captured” Lukwago and “taken him to the basement.” In another post on X, he threatened “hurt and pain” on Lukwago. Later, he published a series of photos of Lukwago blindfolded and visibly under duress in an unknown location. The photos were accompanied by chilling comments. In response to public outrage, Kainerubaga published today a post on X promising to release Lukwago to the police.

Lukwago is the lead defense attorney of jailed veteran opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has been dragged through a show trial before a kangaroo court since his November 2024 arrest. His abduction is direct retaliation for his impending move to serve legal papers on Kainerubaga over a series of chilling death threats that the general issued against Besigye. It is also the latest in a pattern of abductions of regime critics and opponents.