A 22-year-old Kenyan soldier killed in Somalia three weeks ago on Monday, November 21, repeatedly called his mother a day before the attack.
The young soldier gave his mother a raft of instructions on what to do, not knowing that it was the last time he would speak to his family.
Speaking to Nation Africa, the mother shared the details of the call while being overwhelmed by her son's death at the hand of a lone gunman who attacked a military base in lower Juba.
“A day before he died, he called me and requested I supervise the planting of crops in a farm he bought in the neighbourhood,” his mother told the Nation Africa in an interview.
She highlighted the impact of the son's death, indicating that he was the pillar of the family, as his siblings depended on him for financial support.
“It is so painful to lose a child in such a manner," the grieving mother lamented.
Even though she did not regret her son joining the military, she wished he was not deployed to Somalia early in his career.
“It is unfortunate he died before he could marry, start a family of his own and make progress in life the way he had planned.
"I don’t have a grandchild to remember my son with,” the mother bemoaned.
The deceased was recruited into the military in 2020 and deployed to Somalia soon after graduating.
“We were looking forward to reuniting as a family next year, but now we are left with his memories, ” his father added.
The family reportedly learnt about the tragedy a day after the incident happened. The late soldier's body was flown back to Kenya and buried in their rural home.
During the interment, the military gave their colleague a 21-gun salute in honour of his sacrifice.
