KDF On The Spot Again Over Somali Vandalism Claims

In yet another brazen attack, the Somali government has accused Kenyan troops of destroying Telecommunication masts in the Southern parts of Somalia.  

This was reportedly done under the guise of halting communication between militants in the southern region where Al Shabaab militants run rampant.

The destroyed telecommunication equipment are said to belong to a Somali Telecommunications firm Hormuud Telecom.

The statement by Homuund Telecommunication Company.

In a strongly-worded statement on Saturday, August 24, the company says there had been 11 other similar attacks over the last two years disconnecting up to 4,000 people in the Gedo region.

It reported that Kenyan troops unlawfully destroyed crucial Hormuud Telecom masts located in Gedo & Lower Juba regions of the Jubaland State of Somalia.

The company laments that thousands of people in the affected Cows-Qurun area have limited access to food, water, medicine and other essentials due to the communication blackouts and mobile money transfer services' interruption caused by the vandalism of its equipment.

The company alleged that the Kenyan troops used 'powerful explosives, to destroy all the equipment in the mast including the tower, the Base Transceiver Station (BTS), two power generators, batteries, rectifiers, and the entire building.'

They further reported that in earlier incidents, the KDF troops attacked their facilities, killing their staff and leaving many others with injuries.

The Somali Telecommunication Minister Abdi Anshur Hassan was quoted saying that "an enemy" had launched an open attack on the Somali economy.

These, he said, was a blight to the efforts of the international community to liberate Somalia from decades of an internal war and urged the international community to intervene and hold Kenya responsible for the 'barbaric attacks'.

A Shabaab Militants.

The Cows-Qurun region is located in Southern Somalia and is a region where the Al Shabaab militants still have a strong grip over.

This is not the first time there have been run-ins between the KDF troops and the Somali Government.

Only recently, the Somali government accused the KDF of engaging in the lucrative charcoal business under the guise of combating the Al Shabaab militants in the region.

 

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