Prominent Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye has appeared before a military court in the capital, Kampala, where he has denied charges that include the illegal possession of firearms and negotiating to buy arms abroad.

A Ugandan military court in Kampala has ordered former opposition presidential candidate, Kizza Besigye, and his travel companion, Obeid Lutale, to be held in pretrial detention in a prison, the latest example of Uganda’s authorities misusing military courts and military-related charges to clamp down on the opposition.

Kenya's government said it was investigating how a prominent Ugandan opposition leader was spirited out of Nairobi this week, amid growing criticism that it had failed to protect foreign dissidents on its soil.

A well-known Ugandan opposition figure appeared in a military court Wednesday days after he was reported missing in neighboring Kenya, and denied a charge of seeking military support from abroad to destabilize Uganda’s military forces.

The wife of Ugandan opposition figure Kizza Besigye says he was kidnapped in neighboring Kenya and is being held in a Ugandan military jail.

Kizza Besigye, a former presidential candidate, went missing over the weekend as he visited the Kenyan capital, reappearing days later in military custody back in Uganda.

A prominent Ugandan opposition politician was kidnapped during a book launch in Kenya over the weekend, transferred to Uganda and is being held at a military jail in Kampala, his wife said on Wednesday.