By Mike Rwothomio

Two suspected male refugees died and four others were arrested after riots erupted at Imvepi Refugee Settlement in Terego District on Tuesday, 25 August 2026, leaving government and UN offices in flames.

The identities of the two deceased individuals had not been disclosed by press time. However, police had arrested four suspects identified as Aate Jackline, Ojosile Guido, Onziga Lawrence and Oru Santino.

According to West Nile Regional Police Spokesperson SSP Josephine Angucia, the violence broke out around 4:00 p.m. at Imvepi Base Camp in Yinga village, Lugbari parish, Odupi sub-county. The incident was reported to police at 4:30 p.m. by settlement commandant Mutawe Mark.

Angucia said the unrest stemmed from a dispute over Refugee Welfare Council (RWC) elections. Nominations for RWC levels 3 and 1 ran from 10–14 August. Four candidates vied for the RWC 3 position, but only two were successfully nominated. Loro Charles James, who was not nominated, continued campaigning, prompting complaints to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).

Earlier On Monday 24 August, OPM and partners met the candidates and instructed Loro to stop campaigning.

The following day, around 2:30 p.m., South Sudanese refugees supporting him marched to Imvepi Police Station carrying placards demanding “No elections on 26th August 2026” unless their candidate was included on the ballot.

Police directed the group to an open playground for dialogue with authorities.

"The crowd then turned violent, stoning police officers and setting fire to the OPM administrative block and all property inside, the Imvepi Police office and barracks, and vandalising the UNHCR office block and OPM canteen" Angucia said in a statement.

She added " One police motorcycle and a generator were burnt, two vehicles were badly damaged, two police officers were injured, and seven suspects in custody escaped. Two suspected male refugees died in the scuffle"

Police opened a case of arson and malicious damage to property at Terego Central Police Station (CRB 289/2026).

Officers visited and documented the scene, transferred the bodies to Arua Regional Referral Hospital for postmortem, and summoned the Arua fire brigade.

Reinforcements from Maracha and the Field Force Unit (West Nile Region) were deployed to secure the area.

Police condemned the refugees for taking the law into their own hands instead of resolving concerns peacefully through settlement authorities.

Investigations continue, and those found responsible will be prosecuted.

Uganda hosts one of the largest refugee populations in Africa. According to the latest UNHCR data as of 31 July 2026, the country is home to approximately 2.04 million refugees and asylum-seekers.

Offices in flames

Mike Rwothomio is the news editor at Zoomer Africa your number one grassroot information hub for African news trends and updates.