At least 40 people, mostly students, have been killed at a school in western Uganda by rebels linked to the Islamic State group.
A further eight people remain in critical condition after the attack on Lhubiriha secondary school in Mpondwe.
Boys who were staying in dormitories at the school are among the dead.
The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) – a Ugandan group based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – have been blamed for Friday’s attack.
National police spokesperson Fred Enanga said many of the bodies were transferred to Bwera Hospital,.
The attack happened at around 11:30pm local time on Friday at the school in the Kasese district in western Uganda.
Over 60 people are educated at the school, most of whom live there.
ADF rebels burnt a dormitory and a food store was also looted during the incident, according to Mr Enanga.
Major General Dick Olum from the Ugandan army told the media that Some of the boys were burnt or hacked to death,.
Others at the school, mostly girls, have been abducted by the group.\
Some of the bodies are said to have been badly burnt and DNA tests will need to be carried out to identify them.
The attackers are said to have torched the students’ mattresses and are also thought to have detonated bombs in the region.
Members of the wider community are possibly among the dead while a number of students remain unaccounted for.
Soldiers are pursuing ADF insurgents towards the DRC’s Virunga National park – Africa’s oldest and largest national park which is home to rare species, including mountain gorillas.
Militias including the ADF also use the vast expanse, which borders Uganda and Rwanda, as a hideout.
The Ugandan army has also deployed planes to help track the rebel group.
Uganda and the DRC have held joint military operations in the east Congo to prevent attacks by the ADF.
The deadly episode follows last week’s attack by suspected ADF fighters in a village in the DRC near to the Ugandan border. Over 100 villagers fled to Uganda but have since returned.
The attack on the school, located less than two kilometres (1.25 miles) from the DRC border, is the first such attack on a Ugandan school in 25 years.
ADF rebels have been operating from inside the DRC for the past two decades.
