Kampala, Uganda ? The first group of Ugandan rebels have turned up at a neutral camp in southern Sudan as part of a truce to end 19 years of conflict with the government, the chief mediator said Monday.

The Lord’s Resistance Army rebels, notorious for cutting off the tongues and lips of civilians during the insurgency, signed the truce with the government last month. The deal calls for rebel fighters to gather in largely uninhabited areas across the border in southern Sudan, where they will be protected while a broader peace deal is negotiated.

Several hundred rebels – led by deputy Vincent Otti, with leader Joseph Kony expected to follow – showed up at Ri kwangba camp, just north of the Congo border, said southern Sudan’s Vice President Riek Machar, who is mediating the talks.

Under the truce, the rebels were given several weeks to gather at two designated sites. About 400 rebels have arrived at the other camp, Owiny-Ki-Bul, in southern Sudan just north of the Ugandan border, Machar said.