5 KDF Soldiers Killed in IED Attack at Bodhei, Boni Forest, Lamu County

Five Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers were on Wednesday killed after their vehicle ran over an improvised explosive device (IED).

The attack by suspected Al Shabaab militants in Bodhei area, Boni Forest, left six of their colleagues injured.

The soldiers were riding on a lorry when it ran over the bomb in Kwa Omolo area in Lamu County.

[caption caption="The wreckage of lorry involved in an IED attack"][/caption]

Sources indicate that the vehicle was moving from Baragoni towards Bodhei and was extensively damaged in the Wednesday morning incident.

Boni Forest has been regularly used as a hideout for the terrorists who periodically launch surprise attacks in the Coastal region of Kenya.

The frequent attacks by the militants saw the government launch a special operation codenamed Operation Linda Boni in the area, to flush out the Al Shabaab militants.

The unfortunate attack came a day after Kenya and Tanzania commemorated 20 years since the tragic US Embassy bombings on 7th August 1998 that thrust Al-Qaeda terror group onto the global stage.

Reports indicate that an estimated 100 security agents have perished in the past three years after IED attacks in Lamu, Garissa, Wajir and Mandera Counties.

The attack comes in the wake of tactical change by the KDF which has seen camels enjoined in the animal patrol units to curb insecurity in the rough terrain along the Kenya-Somali border.

[caption caption="The camel patrol unit during training in Isiolo"][/caption]

The Al Shabaab militants have resorted to IEDs and ambush attacks which is seen as a sign of dwindling military power and incapacitation following ongoing military incursion in Somali involving KDF and allied AMISOM forces.

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