Four killed in Al-Shabaab explosion in Kenya

NAIROBI, Kenya - At least four people were killed over the weekend in northeastern parts of Kenya, authorities said, following a road blast that detonated within Garissa County, one of the serious Al-Shabaab hotspots in the East African nation.

According to the report by the police, the vehicle in which the four were traveling ran over an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), dismantling the vehicle on the spot. The explosive was planted along Dadaab-Garissa Road.

The road is usually busy given that humanitarian teams also use it to dispatch food and other items to people affected by recent floods in the East African nation. Al-Shabaab militants have taken responsibility for the attack, officials said.

"The four were killed and two others were seriously injured when their vehicle was hit by an IED between Egge dam and Bogyar along Dadaab-Garissa," the police said in a security report.

The police said the vehicle was extensively damaged, noting that the injured persons were in critical conditions, adding that security operations have been enhanced to thwart further attacks in the region that borders Somalia.

Recently, Kenya deployed Special Forces from the Kenya Defense Forces to the northeastern region and the team has managed to flush out Al-Shabaab besides destroying the group's camps. Several makeshift camps and other weapons by the group have been seized.

Al-Shabaab attacks in the region have tremendously reduced due to a change of tactics by Kenya's security forces, who have increased surveillance. The government of Kenya has also built several Forward Operating Bases along the porous border.

GAROWE ONLINE