Al Shabaab militants carry out a dawn attack on a Mandera AP camp

juma chrispinus

February 2, 2017 8:31 AM

Casualties have not been reported. This comes a few days after the militants overrun a KDF camp in Somalia, leaving dozens dead.

Hit gunmen suspected to be from a Somalia based militant group Al-Shabaab have this morning attacked an Administration Police (AP) post and destroyed communication masts in Arabia area, Mandera County, police have said.

The attack cut communication between the police officers who were manning the AP camp and other senior commanders.

However, sources say that it is not immediately and clearly established if there were casualties following the early morning incident.

North Eastern regional security coordinator Mohamud Saleh said they had sent a response team to check on the casualties.

“There is no communication with officers on the ground but there was an attack there. Teams are heading there,” he said.

Police say there has been no communication with the officers who were at the post which is about 100 kilometres away from Mandera town and hence a team has been dispatched to establish what happened.

Last month, a police reservist was killed in a foiled attack in Mandera Town. This is the latest mast to be targeted in a series.

Serial attacks

Many others were attacked in Fino town in the area. Others were attacked in Dabacity in Elwak. Dabacity had last year become a terror hotspot recording about four incidents in less than a month.

This comes in the wake of an attack on the Kulbiyow based Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) camp in Somalia, in an attack where dozens of soldiers are feared dead.

Kenya has been battling Somalia based Al Shabaab since 2011 when the troops joined the African Mission in Somalaia (AMISOM) troops to reinstate peace in the war torn country.

juma chrispinus