KAMPALA — Two children have died, and three others sustained serious injuries after they were allegedly stabbed at a family home in Kalungu-Bunga, Ggaba Parish, in Kampala early Thursday morning.
The incident occurred at about 4:00 a.m. on August 20, 2026, according to Kampala Metropolitan Police.
Police identified the deceased as 14-year-old Khadija Daizy, who was found dead in her bedroom, and seven-year-old Hawa Dalena, who later died while receiving treatment at Nsambya Hospital. The three surviving children, aged 13, eight and five, were taken to hospital for treatment.
The suspect has been identified as Namayo Dorothy, 43, a Kenyan national and the children’s mother. She was also found injured and is receiving treatment at Mulago National Referral Hospital under police guard.
Alarm alerted neighbours
According to accounts cited by local media, a domestic worker at the home was alerted by an alarm and cries for help.
Neighbours who responded reportedly found a Toyota Hiace van on fire at the property and children inside the locked house crying for help. They forced their way into the house and discovered the injured children and one of the deceased children.
One of the surviving children reportedly told neighbours that their mother had carried out the attack.
Police have not, however, publicly established the motive. Reports indicate that the incident followed a domestic dispute between the suspect and her husband on Wednesday, but investigators are still working to establish what happened before the attack.
A jerrycan suspected to have contained petrol was recovered at the scene after the vehicle was burnt.
Murder, attempted murder and arson
Kampala Metropolitan Police said the case is being investigated as murder, attempted murder and arson.
Homicide detectives, Scene of Crime Officers and Fire and Rescue personnel examined the scene and recovered exhibits for forensic analysis. The bodies of the two deceased children were taken to Mulago City Mortuary for postmortem examinations.
Police are also expected to establish how the fire was started and whether the burning of the vehicle was connected to the stabbing incident.
The case has shocked residents in Ggaba, where another deadly stabbing involving children earlier this year has already drawn national attention. In April, four children were killed at a daycare centre in Ggaba in an attack allegedly carried out by Christopher Okello Onyum; the case is now before the High Court.
The latest incident is therefore likely to intensify concerns about violence against children in the Ggaba area.
For now, police say investigations are continuing as the surviving children receive medical care and the suspect remains under guard in hospital.
The central questions — what triggered the attack, what happened inside the home before 4 a.m., and why the vehicle was set ablaze — remain under investigation.
