Independent charismatic church leaders say another tragedy is now occurring as legitimate Christian groups in Uganda are falsely accused of cultic activity. Local police estimate at least 930 were killed in four cult branches in the mountainous villages of southwestern Uganda, ten miles east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In addition to the more than 500 killed in the Kanungu inferno, nearly 400 more bodies were discovered in five mass graves.
Examiners say bodies in the mass graves had been stabbed, strangled, poisoned, and beaten.
Nearly 200 victims were children. Bagambe, an Anglican, refused to join the cult, even after family members accused her of deserting her children, who had joined the group with their father. Restricted Registration Security forces in the Kanungu region and across Uganda are monitoring groups with suspected associations or similarities to the cult. Government reaction to the killings has been mixed. While pledging to help capture cult leaders, President Yoweri Museveni says fringe groups ought to be studied, not stormed by government troops.