U.S. to intensify campaign against brutal Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA)

world. “The Americans are providing the resources that we lack,” said Ugandan Brigadier Samuel Kavuma, the general who commands Ugandan, Congolese and South Sudanese forces participating in the search.

American involvement in the hunt for Kony is an unusual military operation, considering Kony is not an Islamist extremist, and that he poses no direct threat to the United States. Moreover, Kony’s influence over a substantial portion of central Africa has been reduced by a Ugandan military campaign; yet U.S. military officers and diplomats in the region consider Kony a target worth pursuing.

“Is Joseph Kony a direct threat to the United States? No,” Scott DeLisi, U.S. ambassador to Uganda, told thePost. “He’s not targeting U.S. citizens. He’s not targeting U.S. embassies. He’s not al-Qaeda.” DeLisi claims that pursuing Kony merits U.S. involvement because Kony’s behavior counters America’s “core values.” “Why is the United States engaged in the world, for God’s sake?” he said. “If we are true to what we believe in as Americans . . . we need to get rid of Joseph Kony.”

America’s involvement in the hunt for Kony was promoted by young activists who petitioned Congress to respond to African nations pursuing Kony. In 2009, The Resolve, an advocacy group seeking to raise awareness about Kony and his murderous campaigns, led 1,700 young students to a day of lobbying Congress. “We had all of these high school students calling up congressional offices,” recalled Michael Poffenberger, Resolve’s executive director. “At first, they were totally bewildered.”

After pressure from Resolve supporters, including some members of Congress, President Obama in May 2010 signed into law a bill authorizing the State and Defense departments to study options for U.S. involvement.

The strategy for defeating Kony has evolved from hunting Kony to persuading members of the LRA to withdraw their allegiance to the LRA. An aircraft chartered by the U.S. government is used to drop pamphlets in areas thought to harbor LRA fighters, encouraging them to defect.

Since U.S. involvement has increased, the LRA has not launched a large-scale attack, and Kony is considered to be preoccupied with avoiding coalition forces than terrorizing villagers. “For all intents and purposes,” Leahy said, “the LRA is a defeated force.”

The White House has yet to approve the Ospreys for deployment, since such a move would require a troop increase beyond the 100-person limit set by Obama. Additional troops would require notification of Congress under the War Powers Act, which White House officials think would complicate negotiations with legislators on other matters.