They stopped being rustlers and became a serious military force

Major Shaban Bantariza Army spokesman

Army spokesman Major Shaban Bantariza told French news agency AFP that warriors of the Jie sub-group of the larger Karamojong tribe, who are resisting the forcible seizure of their guns, engaged government troops in a firefight on Saturday.

The fighting took place in the Napunpum area of Karamoja where the warriors had dug up trenches as a defensive tactic.

"On Saturday we attacked a village in Panyangara subcounty, Kotrido distrtict, where these warriors had dug in," Bantariza told Reuters news agency.

"We killed 13 and injured many of them."

Arms seized

"The moment they dug in, they stopped being rustlers and became a serious military force and we responded with the appropriate force," he said.

He said the troops seized rifles as well as submachineguns and rocket propelled grenade launchers.

Karamoja has been unstable for years because of the large number of arms held by the area's nomadic tribesmen.

For years, Karimojong cattle rustlers have carried out bloody raids on each other and against neighbouring tribes.

Last year, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni launched a programme to disarm the Karimojong.

The deadline for voluntary disarmament expired in February and the army is currently disarming the tribesmen by force.