Three passengers killed in IED attack in Mandera
At least three passengers were killed and five others injured after a vehicle they were travelling in was hit by an explosive device in Mandera County.
According to a police report, the Public Service Vehicle was hit on the Wargadud-Takaba route in Mandera South at 2.50pm.
When contacted, Mandera County Commissioner Amos Mariba could neither confirm nor deny the incident, but insisted that there was an ongoing operation in the county.
"We are in an operation and I cannot talk to you at the moment," Mr Mariba said by telephone.
Among the dead is a non-local, while another who escaped from the scene was rescued by residents and taken to the Elele Quick Response Unit security camp.
According to the security report seen by Nation.Africa, the vehicle was carrying 14 passengers.
Five people were seriously injured while four others ran into the bush and are yet to be found.
This is the second terrorist attack in the area in a month.
On June 3, three policemen were killed and five others injured when their vehicle was hit by an explosive device in the same area.
The officers were on a security patrol on the Wargadud-Elele-Takaba road when they were attacked.
The continued attacks in Mandera come as local leaders called on residents to join the government in fighting the terrorists who come from neighbouring Somalia.
On Monday, government security officials and political leaders in Mandera agreed to rally locals against terrorism in the county.
Meanwhile, four police officers who were reported missing on Tuesday after a terrorist attack that killed two colleagues have been found alive.
The four were part of a group of seven escorting a bus from Banisa to Mandera when their vehicle was hit by an explosive device in Tarbi area of Guba Ward on the Banisa-Rhamu-Mandera road.
At least three people, including two police officers, were killed in the incident.
A policeman and a civilian travelling in the police vehicle were injured.
The police vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED), marking yet another deadly attack in the area.
The deceased civilian is said to have been a local road engineer who had hitched a ride in the vehicle.
No injuries were reported on the bus, police said. The terrorists behind the attack escaped.
A rescue team responding to the incident was also attacked, but managed to repel the assailants.
The team rescued the two casualties and recovered three bodies. They also recovered three Ak47s and two G3 rifles from the scene.
The attack came just a day after all security chiefs and leaders in Mandera County embarked on a path to find innovative ways to tackle insecurity and violent extremism.
The head of the Mandera County Security Committee said the local community was now committed to helping the security agencies fight al-Shabaab.
"We have reached an agreement with the local community on ways to cooperate in this fight. The search and flushing out of the militants is now under way and the goodwill of the local community is what we needed," said Mr Mariba.
The 2pm incident came just hours after officers from the quick response unit based in Guba spent the night battling the militants who attempted to attack their base.
The officers successfully repelled the attackers after nearly two hours of gunfire, according to local sources.
"There was an incident during the night and this explosive was planted on the road, we suspect by the same attackers targeting a security camp in Guba," Mr Mariba said.
He said it was a remote-controlled explosive as several mobile devices were found at the scene.
"The explosives are planted by terrorists hiding in the bush and activated as soon as their target arrives at the scene," Mr Mariba said.
Even as the security committee reports success in winning over the local community to the fight, cases of insincerity and collaboration with the enemy continue to be reported.
In Mandera, police are holding one of their own on suspicion of involvement in the theft of firearms.
On Saturday, the police officer stationed at Olla police post in Mandera North, was arrested in connection with the theft of two firearms.
It was reported that the officer stole the two guns from the armoury and he was supposed to hand them over to a civilian.
The two guns were loaded with thirty rounds of ammunition each.
The guns disappeared on Friday night, only to be discovered on Saturday morning by officer Edwin Yego, who was manning the armoury.
When arrested, the policeman revealed that he was in contact with the intended recipient and that his job was to get the guns out of the station.
He led the officers to a thicket on a farm about 400 metres from the station where the two rifles were partially buried.
"We have al-Shabaab sympathisers even in the police force, just as we accuse the local community of collaborating with the enemy," said Mr Hassan Omar, a resident of Mandera.
The Olla area has witnessed several terrorist attacks in the recent past, the most recent in January.
In January, a woman was killed and several others injured in a suspected terror attack in the area.
According to security officials in Mandera North, the woman died after suspected al-Shabaab militants targeted a public service vehicle plying the Banisa-Mandera road.
"We have activated all our security teams on the ground and are pursuing the enemy in the county. Action will be taken against anyone involved in lawlessness," Mr Mariba said.
Tuesday's incident took place as Defence Cabinet Secretary Adan Duale and Home Affairs Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo held a public baraza in Masalani, Garissa County.
Mr Duale announced that the government was now modernising the KDF and police artillery in a renewed effort to end al-Shabaab attacks in the region.
The CS said the equipment would include sophisticated armoured personnel carriers with the ability to detect explosives on the roads.
