Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) in Mandera town battled Al-Shabaab insurgents for close to half an hour on Friday morning following an ambush on their two armoured vehicles near Arabia town.
The militants had planted explosives along the road, thereby, damaging a police car before engaging them in a fierce gun battle after which they retreating into the bush as they were overpowered. Several security officers sustained minor injuries and were swiftly transferred to the nearby Lafey Hospital for medication. The damaged police vehicle was also pulled to Fino Police Camp.
According to news posted by Nepjournal, a joint force of General Service Unit (GSU) and KDF are currently patrolling the Mandera -Lafey – Elwak stretch. It is said that the frequent attacks in the area are attributed to its proximity to the Somalia border, a factor that enables the Al-Shabaab militants to sneak in and out to terrorise residents.
Attacks have drastically reduced in Kenya since the KDF soldiers in collaboration with other security agencies increased their patrols along the porous stretch where the militants frequently carried out deadly attacks in the past with the March 13, 2015 attack on Governor Ali Roba’s convoy being the most recent.