Kenya: Police officers in Mandera repulse suspected Al-Shabaab attack

NAIROBI, Kenya - Police in Mandera on the night of Friday, August 18, 2023, successfully repulsed an attack at the Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU) Elram Camp.

In a police report seen by Nairobi News, the suspected Al Shabaab militants attacked the camp by firing bullets and also using Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs).

“The attack was from the eastern parts of the camp at about 200 meters. They fired into the camp. The militia strength is not known,” the report read in part.

Police say that the attack lasted about 10 minutes but it was well repulsed as the officers there were on a high alert after receiving an intel on a possible attack there.

The RPGs caused fire both inside and outside the camp and the officers were unable to contain it due to the dry vegetation around the station.

 
“Neither injuries nor casualties were reported during the incident. More details will be sent on the same,” the report further read.

Mandera County has seen an upsurge in al shabaab attacks bearing the fact that it lies in the border between Kenya and Somalia.

On July 5, 2023, Al Shabaab militants killed two police officers in an incident that left four officers hospitalized.

On July 4, 2023, Al Shabaab militants also shot dead a police reservist identified as Mohamud Abdullahi.

Suspected al-Shabaab terrorists carried out the attack on Elele-Takaba road in Mandera County.

The incident occurred as officers from the Quick Response Unit (QRU) were patrolling Mandera County following intelligence reports that suspected al-Shabaab fighters had been spotted at the Kenyan border.

Armed with rocket-propelled grenades, the militants attacked the officers, killing one on the spot and injuring others.

“Another officer died in the attack and a team of officers is already on the ground combing the area to flush out the suspected militants,” Mandera County Commissioner Amos Omariba, told the media then.

At the time of the attack, Interior CS Kithure Kindiki had been holding meetings with top security agencies in the North Eastern region over the terror attacks.

Source: Nairobi News