Two foreign tourists and their Ugandan guide have been killed in an attack by suspected Islamist rebels, police have said.

The attack happened in the Queen Elizabeth National Park – one of Uganda’s most popular conservation areas – according to police.

“We have registered a cowardly terrorist attack on two foreign tourists and a Ugandan in Queen Elizabeth National Park,” police spokesperson Fred Enanga wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“The three were killed, and their safari vehicle burnt,” he added.

Mr Enanga said police were pursuing suspected members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) – an armed group aligned with Islamic State (IS).

A spokesperson for the Uganda Wildlife Authority said the attack took place on the outskirts of the park on Tuesday evening.

Bashir Hangi said the authority was working with security agencies “to establish who could have carried out this heinous act”.

He did not give details on the tourists’ nationalities.

The park is located in a remote area of Uganda, on the eastern bank of Lake Edward and near to the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

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The ADF – a group considered a terrorist organisation by the Ugandan government – operates out of western Uganda and parts of the DRC.

From its formation in 1996 until 2019, it was one united group. However, it fragmented in 2019 following the jailing of its long-term leader.

The group is affiliated with the Islamist terror group IS through its central African division.

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