Police gunned down seven bandits in a rare fiery shootout Tuesday evening.

Dozens of bandits, police said, flee after they were persistently shot and wounded by the police in a heavily mounted operation in Baringo County’s Tiaty area.

A police officer was also shot and seriously wounded as they engaged the gunmen in Nasorot, a remote village in the volatile region where Pokot and Marakwet clans have been fighting prompting the military deployment.

“The seven bandits were killed but there are many more who are believed to have escaped with serious injuries,” one senior police officer from the region said, “the death toll is likely to rise.”

An AK-47 rifle was recovered from the Pokot bandits who are said to have been planning a raid on villages to drive away livestock, according to police.

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Such raids have since January left more than 50 people dead, including women and children.

Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet confirmed the death toll when reached by Capital Fm News on Tuesday night but did not provide more details.

Dozens of villagers have been fleeing their homes in Baringo lately since the Military launched a joint security operation with the police despite assurances on their safety.

The biting drought ravaging parts of Baringo, Laikipia and Samburu have complicated matters for locals who often rely on livestock and are now forced to relocate in search of pasture, with some now pushing away private ranchers in Laikipia where a British rancher Tristan Voorspuy was recently killed.