Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine was arrested at Entebbe International Airport near the capital Kampala on Thursday as he returned to the country, according to his party the National Unity Platform.
The National Unity Platform (NUP) said in a social media post that Wine was “violently arrested upon his return to Uganda. We are yet to establish his whereabouts.”
The party released video showing several men grabbing Wine on the tarmac, while one of his associates repeatedly yells, “Where are you taking him?”
CNN has reached out to the Ugandan police for comment.
The arrest appears to be an attempt to stop a planned procession outside the airport by Wine’s supporters as police issued a warning ahead of his arrival urging them to cancel the march.
Opposition frontrunner
Wine, a popstar-turned-politician whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, was the main opposition frontrunner in the presidential elections in January 2021 and lost to President Yoweri Museveni.
Museveni claimed he had been re-elected for a sixth term despite widespread allegations of fraud and intimidation. Wine rejected the election results, saying he had evidence of fraud and intimidation.
On Thursday, as Wine returned to the country, the National Unity Platform also claimed its headquarters was “under siege.”
His party also said on ‘X,’ formerly known as Twitter, that military choppers have been filmed hovering over Wine’s home in Magere, Uganda, adding that “security operatives have been deployed all round his perimeter fence.”
Wine has faced multiple arrests by Ugandan security forces over the years, particularly in the lead up to Uganda’s controversial elections.
