On Tuesday, a Ugandan army court extended the detention of opposition leader Kizza Besigye until January next year.
Besigye’s defense team had requested a short adjournment, but the court martial head sided with the state, which demanded a longer break.
Besigye, along with his comrade Obeid Lutale Kamulegeya, faces charges of endangering national security and subversion. The two were reportedly kidnapped by Ugandan intelligence from Kenya’s capital in November, sparking outrage. 
The pair is scheduled to return to court on January 7, 2025, for the mention of their case. Besigye’s attorneys have opposed his trial in the army tribunal and have refused to apply for bail before it.
Besigye, a retired officer of the Ugandan army and a doctor by profession, has been a prominent opposition figure.
Erias Lukwago, one of Besigye’s lawyers, criticized the proceedings, calling it a “kangaroo court” and stating, “These are not proceedings of a competent court of law.” Ugandan law does not permit trying civilians in army courts.
However, the Ugandan state has taken advantage of the delay by the country’s top court to affirm a Constitutional Court ruling on the matter, continuing to try President Yoweri Museveni’s opponents in the army court.
Besigye has run for president four times, each time controversially losing to Museveni.
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