Secret intelligence and military contracts don't stay buried forever. A massive cache of internal documents from Israeli defense contractor Elbit Systems has leaked, exposing years of deep, undisclosed military cooperation between Kampala and Tel Aviv.
If you've been following East African security politics or Uganda's recent parliamentary vote to send troops toward a proposed Gaza stabilization mission, these files fill in blanks that governments spent years trying to obscure. We aren't talking about minor diplomatic handshakes. We're looking at tens of millions of dollars in advanced hardware, elite training packages, and surveillance infrastructure that transformed Uganda's military capabilities behind closed doors. Expanding on this theme, you can find more in: The Price of the Iron Ledger.
Following the Drone Money
The centerpiece of the leaked archive revolves around an extensive unmanned aerial vehicle acquisition program. Investigators reviewing the hacked emails and internal corporate files found a signed March 2024 contract worth a staggering $52.1 million.
This agreement wasn't small potatoes. It secured four Hermes 900 surveillance drones manufactured by Elbit Systems, packed with the company's SkEye wide-area persistent surveillance technology. The paperwork lists DeepSight Limited as the direct corporate customer, while designating the Ugandan government, its Military Intelligence wing, and the elite Special Forces Command (SFC) as the end users. Observers at The New York Times have provided expertise on this trend.
The SFC guards President Yoweri Museveni and controls strategic state assets. At the time these deals matured, the command was led by Museveni's son, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who now heads the entire Ugandan armed forces.
Paper trails show this wasn't a sudden purchase. The documents prove Kampala's drone ambitions date back years. A September 2021 Elbit pricing sheet outlined a $16.1 million package that bundled two Hermes 900 aircraft with ground-control stations, training, and routine maintenance for an older Hermes 450 already active in Uganda's inventory. Factor in spare parts and logistical support, and that specific arrangement hit $18.4 million.
Refurbished Hermes 450 units started trickling into Uganda as early as 2019, followed by additional deliveries through 2020 and 2021.
Beyond Simple Surveillance
Surveillance is only part of the equation. The leaked Elbit files document interest in offensive and electronic warfare systems that raise serious operational questions.
Records within the archive mention the AES-210 electronic-intelligence system alongside SkyStriker loitering munitions—kamikaze drones designed to locate and destroy targets by crashing into them. Internal management presentations from early 2022 also reference preparations for integrating Lizard 3 laser-guidance kits. These kits turn standard, unguided iron bombs into precision-guided munitions.
Uganda's footprint with these platforms hasn't entirely remained a secret until now. General Kainerugaba dropped public hints back in February 2022 by posting hangar footage of Ugandan personnel alongside a Hermes 900 while referencing operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Later, in August 2024, a drone bearing Ugandan markings crashed in eastern Congo. United Nations investigators inspected the wreckage and formally identified it as an Elbit-built Hermes 900.
The corporate files confirm that Elbit's footprint extended far beyond handing over hardware. The company was deeply involved in building out ground infrastructure, automated takeoff and landing systems, secure communications networks, and data-processing hubs designed to interpret raw intelligence feeds.
The Timing and the Geopolitical Fallout
These disclosures surface at a volatile moment. Uganda's parliament recently approved a motion authorizing the deployment of roughly 1,200 troops from the Uganda People's Defence Forces to participate in an international security and stabilization mission concerning Gaza.
Critics and opposition lawmakers in Kampala immediately questioned the logistics and political alignment of the deployment. Ministers have argued the mission aims to restore order and handle humanitarian aid distribution, but the timing places bilateral military relations under an unforgiving microscope.
Official defense ties between Uganda and Israel formalised back in September 2022 through a bilateral defense cooperation memorandum. Senior Ugandan defense officials openly credited Israeli partners at the time with upgrading their air defense, border protection protocols, and intelligence-gathering frameworks.
While the leaked archive exposes massive arms transfers and corporate logistics, it doesn't provide smoking-gun proof that Israel traded these weapons deals directly in exchange for Uganda's agreement to join a Gaza security force.
Instead, the files illustrate a long-standing, transactional security partnership. Kampala gets advanced aerospace and surveillance tech to project power regionally, while Israeli defense manufacturers secure lucrative contracts outside traditional Western export markets. As these documents continue circulating through international media outlets, both governments face a reality where classified ledgers are now public property.
