Eight killed in Kenya terror attack

Eight people, including two police reservists and five construction workers, have been killed in an ambush by suspected Al-Shabaab militants in northeastern Kenya, near the border with Somalia.

The attack occurred at about 7 a.m. on Tuesday, November 10, in Mandera County, where a road construction project is under way, according to police and a senior regional official cited by Reuters.

The victims comprised two National Police Reservists, five road construction workers and the driver of their vehicle.

A report from a local police station said the attackers opened fire on the group while they were travelling to a construction site.

Regional official John Odhiambo Otieno said the armed assailants were believed to have crossed into Kenya from neighbouring Somalia.

He added that investigations were ongoing to establish the identities of those responsible for the attack.

Local newspaper Daily Nation reported that the workers had left Mandera town in two vehicles as part of a group of about 15 people travelling to the construction site along the Mandera-Arabia-Lafey road.

According to the publication, the attackers targeted the leading vehicle, while the driver of the second vehicle managed to turn back towards Mandera town.

Seven people were reportedly killed at the scene, while the driver of the attacked vehicle later died while receiving treatment at Mandera County Teaching and Referral Hospital, bringing the death toll to eight.

Mandera County Police Commander Robinson Ndiwa said the victims included two police reservists who were accompanying the construction workers.

He said security teams had begun pursuing the suspected attackers, who fled towards Somalia after the shooting.

The motive for the attack had not been established, according to local police officials.

The incident has raised fresh security concerns in Mandera, a county that shares a long and porous border with Somalia and has experienced repeated attacks attributed to Al-Shabaab.

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The militant group, which is affiliated with al-Qaeda, has carried out attacks against military personnel, security installations and civilians in Somalia and neighbouring Kenya.

Kenya has faced repeated cross-border attacks since deploying troops to Somalia in 2011 as part of efforts to combat the group.

Security analysts say Al-Shabaab’s attacks in Kenya are partly intended to pressure Nairobi into withdrawing its troops from Somalia, where Kenyan forces have participated in regional security operations.

The latest killings come amid continuing efforts by Kenyan security agencies to contain militant activity along the country’s northeastern border.

Authorities have not announced any arrests, while investigations and security operations are continuing to identify and apprehend those responsible.

(monito.co)