Lord's Resistance Army
War-displaced girl mourns at the funeral of her grandfather who died from malaria in Ngalimain in northeastern Congo. Thousands of Congolese have fled their villages since December as Lord's Resistance Army rebels roaming the bush carry out massacres. Reuters

The Obama administration announced on Oct. 14 that it will send U.S. militia to Uganda to help fight the Lord's Resistance Army.

The Lord's Resistance Army, or the LRA, is a feared and brutal insurgency, according to Talking Points Memo (TPM).

Their goal is to overthrow the Ugandan government. They continue to threaten regional stability and civilian safety.

The LRA formed in the 1980s, reports CNN, and is a sectarian military and religious group operating in Uganda with brute force.

The LRA committed numerous abuses and atrocities, including the abduction, rape, maiming, and killing of civilians, including children, reports globalsecurity.org. Since September 2008, the LRA has killed approximately 2,400 civilians and has abducted 3,400, according to the Human Rights Watch group and the U.N.

The Human Rights Watch group is just one of many organizations urging for assistance to be sent to Africa.

President Obama announced that he will send 100 troops to Africa to help the Uganda army hunt down the LRA leaders.

May 24, 2011, marked the one-year anniversary of the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act signed into law by President Obama.

But struggles continue to ravage the country.

The group was started by Joseph Kony who used a spiritual base to gain followers. He claimed to be a prophet sent from God to purify the people of Uganda and to create a bastion of peace, according to globalsecurity.com.

By putting emphasis on his religious powers, Kony has been able to convince many individuals who may be skeptical and his authority is hard to question, writes CNN.

After working with the Uganda People's Democratic Party, or UPDA, Kony began the Lord's Resistance Army. The LRA teamed up with the Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR) and other rebel groups to begin a trail of violence and terror.

The Lord's Resistance Army is known for its abuse against children and use of forced child soldiers. The insurgency has abducted numerous youngsters and forced them into slavery, working as guards, concubines and soldiers, reports globalsecurity.org. Young girls were captured as sex and labor slaves, sold off, or given as gifts to arms dealers in Sudan.

The LRA is currently attacking the regions of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan, and the Central African Republic (CAR).

Human rights Sudan Democratic republic of congo Rwanda