Stratosphere is monitoring information in regards to the series of 3 bomb attacks that occurred in Kampala, the capital of Uganda yesterday. The attacks took place in the city centre while fans were watching the final World Cup match on Sunday July 11, 2010. Our condolences to the Ugandans and foreigners who were impacted by this surprise attack by terrorists with links to Al-Qaeda.
Al Shahab, a Somali based terrorist group, has claimed responsibility for this attack. They claim it was done in retaliation for Ugandan forces deploying troups to Somalia. This is the first terrorist attack in Uganda. Previous attacks have occurred in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in 1998 and then in Mombasa, Kenya in 2002.
Stratosphere has no volunteer groups in Uganda at this time. However, we will be monitoring the situation on an on going basis. We will follow the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs for information on travel safety in Uganda. The next groups are scheduled to arrive in Summer 2011. If a threat of subsequent attacks continues we will look to move groups to a different country and project or to avoid areas under threat while on the ground.