Al Shabaab have launched several attacks in Mandera since 2014. /AFP-FILE.
NAIROBI, Kenya Dec 6 – At least ten people were killed on Friday when Al Shabaab launched an attack on a Mandera-bound bus.
While police officers who spoke to us from the scene placed the number of those dead at 10, Police Spokesman Charles Owino said a comprehensive statement will be issued once a confirmation is done.
“We have had an incident on a Mandera-bound bus that was attacked by a criminal gang and we believe lives are lost. We have dispatched a team of officers to the scene,” Owino told Capital FM News, “We will be issuing a statement shortly.”
The attack occurred between Wargadadud and Kutulo town.
President Uhuru Kenyatta issued a statement on Saturday assuring government will not relent in pursuing the killers that were involved in the attack.
State House Spokesperson Kanze Dena said Kenyatta’s resolve to fight terrorism remained unshaken.
“The Government will not relent in its ruthless crackdown on criminal elements including suspected terrorists in its solemn duty to safeguard the lives and property of Kenyans,” reads the statement.
President Kenyatta further cautioned those planning attacks would face consequences if caught by the relevant authorities.
“I am sending a strong warning and reminder to misguide elements operating within and outside of our national borders and whose actions harm innocent Kenyans that no effort will be spared in neutralizing the threat,” he added.
In November 2014, 28 people were shot dead when Al Shabaab terrorists ambushed a bus headed to Mandera, in the worst such attack targeting non-muslims.
In December 2015, another attack occurred, launched by Al Shabaab militants targetting a Mandera-bound bus.
Mandera County has suffered a series of terror attacks blamed on Al Shabaab in the recent past, including attacks on passengers. Photo/FILE.
The attack on Sunday is in a similar area to an ambush last Monday, when Al Shabaab gunmen opened fire on a bus, killing two people at Elwak.
Two years later in 2016, two buses were attacked under similar circumstances. More than ten people died in both attacks.
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