Nairobi, Kenya, Jan 11 – Four people have lost their lives after suspected Al-Shabaab militants targeted a convoy of Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) engineers in Garissa.
Police say the victims who were part of a team on a routine assessment of the LAPSSET road, lost their lives when the vehicle they were traveling in ran over an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) believed to have been set by the Al-Shabaab elements.
According to police, the IED exploded destroying the first vehicle a Toyota Hilux Double Cabin vehicle completely.
“The other vehicles turned back to Hailey camp,” read a police report.
A convoy of KeNHA engineers in 3 vehicles were on routine assessment of the LAPSSET Road when they were attacked
The team was traveling from Garissa to Hailey Chinese Camp and then to Bura East.
Police managed to retrieve three bodies from the scene while the fourth body is believed to have been completely destroyed in the attack.
This is the first major attack blamed on the Somalia-based Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group in the country since the beginning of the year.
Garissa which seats on the Kenya-Somalia border continues to face the threat of attacks from the Shabaab terror outfit due to the vast and porous border which has made it easier for terrorist elements to infiltrate the country and stage attacks.
On December 31, a Kenya Defence Forces soldier was killed while four others were injured in a suspected Al-Shabaab attack in Lamu County.
KDF Head of Strategic Communication Brigadier Zipporah Kioko indicated that the troops were on patrol in the Milma Faru area in Lamu County when their vehicle triggered an Improvised Explosive Device suspected to have been planted on the road by Al-Shaabab militants.
Two weeks ago, at least two people were shot and killed by suspected Al-Shabaab terrorists who had disguised themselves as Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) officers and erected an illegal roadblock in Witu area, Lamu County.
The gang also burnt down a motorcycle as they conducted an illegal search before they were confronted by police.
