Police: Suspected Shebab Bombers Planned Attacks in Uganda

Ugandan police said Sunday that 19 suspected Islamist Shebab insurgents arrested in weekend raids had planned to carry out bomb attacks, as the U.S. embassy said the immediate threat had been "countered".

Police raids on Saturday came two weeks after Ugandan troops, fighting in Somalia, reportedly provided intelligence that helped U.S. special forces kill the Shebab's chief in a devastating air strike.

"Al-Shebab planned to carry out attacks in Kampala and other towns over the weekend, but police working with sister agencies stopped these attacks and we have recovered the explosives they were to use," police chief Kale Kayihura told AFP.

No details have been given of possible targets.

"We are interrogating 19 to see what leads we get to help expand the investigation," police spokesman Fred Enanga said, adding the suspects were found with "explosive materials related to acts of terror", and their intentions "were very, very clear."

The U.S. embassy on Sunday lifted warnings to its citizens to stay at home, but said people should remain vigilant.

"Based on coordination with Ugandan authorities, and taking into account the heightened security measures the government has put in place, we believe that the immediate threat of an Al-Shebab attack has been effectively countered," the embassy said in a statement. 

"We remain vigilant to the possibility that some of the attack cell could still be at large." 

Last Monday the U.S. embassy warned that Shebab insurgents may try to exact revenge for a U.S. air strike that killed the militant group's commander.

"Stay alert to the ongoing potential for terrorist attacks in Uganda," it said. 

"We also caution U.S. citizens of the possibility of retaliatory attacks in Uganda by Al-Shebab in response to the U.S. and Ugandan military actions in Somalia... which killed Al-Shebab leader Ahmed Godane."

Uganda's government said the country -- a major contributor to AMISOM, the African Union force fighting the Shebab in Somalia -- was "happy" at the death of Godane, and had provided the U.S. with key intelligence on his whereabouts.

During the World Cup final four years ago, Shebab insurgents killed at least 76 people after setting off explosions that ripped through two restaurants in Kampala.

The strike against Godane came days after AU troops and Somali government forces launched "Operation Indian Ocean", a major offensive aimed at seizing key ports from the Shebab and cutting off charcoal exports, one of their key revenue sources.

The Shebab insurgents have claimed recent attacks in Kenya and Djibouti, and at home in Somalia.

The Shebab have also claimed responsibility for the assault on the Westgate shopping center that killed at least 67 people in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi in September last year as well as for attacks on coastal regions.