Suspected Al-Shabaab militants staged a terrorist attack in Lamu County on the night of Monday, August 21 that led to two fatalities.
The assailants targeted a lorry along the Lamu-Witu-Garsen road in the Nyongoro area, unleashing a barrage of gunfire at the vehicle.
Further havoc was wreaked by the suspected terrorists in Mkunubi Ward in Lamu County, where they set fire to and destroyed 10 homes. The incident led to substantial damage to property, the exact value of which remains unknown.
Reports indicate that over 30 terrorists were involved in the attack. Fortunately, no additional fatalities were reported, as the residents had taken refuge in a nearby church, fearing such assaults.
According to security officials, the terrorists also burnt down a church in the region.
Security officials also reported that the suspected Al-Shabaab militants, armed with firearms and improvised weapons, looted goats and household furniture from various homes and farms in the area.
Due to the delayed response, the assailants appeared to have sufficient time to proceed to nearby farmlands, where they harvested maize before retreating into a nearby forest.
Unverified accounts suggest that the terrorists even attempted to assault a General Service Unit (GSU) camp at Pandanguo within Lamu County, but law enforcement officers thwarted the attack.
Locals said that they managed to escape the attack by seeking refuge within fortified churches and camps during the night.
Due to the tense security situation in the region, the residents have shifted away from their homes to safer havens and only go back to their home areas to run their businesses during the day before retreating to their stop-gap homes at night.
Fight against Al-Shabaab
On July 10, merely three days following the elimination of 23 Al-Shabaab extremists by special forces, Interior Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kithure Kindiki vowed that the State would win the war against extremism at whatever cost.
"Special commendation and appreciation to all the security officers who are on the frontline tackling terrorists, bandits, and other armed criminals," the CS stated then.
Following a spate of terrorist attacks, Kindiki further indicated that Kenya would shelve the reopening of the Somalia border until the government stabilises the security situation.
