Military rules out negotiations with al-Shabaab for release of two
Kenya will not negotiate with al-Shabaab militants for the release of two abducted public officials, the Kenyan military spokesman said on Saturday.
Colonel Cyrus Oguna said the position of the KDF had not changed and both the KDF and the government would never negotiate with a criminal organisation. (READ: Kenya demands release of terror war captives)
Col Oguna said it was wrong for the militants to label the two officials prisoners of war when they had been abducted while offering civilian-related services to ordinary Kenyans.
“These dedicated public officials were abducted in a situation that was not combat in nature, and it is thus wrong to brand them as prisoners of war,” he said.
He challenged the militants to confront the KDF and take a soldier if they wanted prisoners of war.
On Friday morning, al-Shabaab posted videos of former Burdedi DO Yesse Mule Edward, who was kidnapped in Wajir last month.
The two videos posted by the Al-Kataib Media Foundation are both titled “Message from Kenyan worker”; the first runs for 7.28 minutes while the second is 9.06 minutes long.
Mr Mule is shown pleading with the Kenyan Government to withdraw from Somalia to save his life. Dressed in a pink shirt, the emotional Mr Mule occasionally breaks down and weeps.
Al-Shabaab wrote on their Twitter account: “The fate of Kenyan PoWs is in the hands of the Kenyan population. Either heed their calls or send them to the guillotine!”
Meanwhile Col Oguna has said that there will not be major changes in the operations after the KDF is integrated into the Amisom.
He said the integration may take time since KDF were still waiting for directions from the African Union Peace and Security Mission.
“KDF is now officially in Amisom though still operating alone,” he said.
He added that even after integration, the deployments will be in areas important to the security of Kenya as a nation, headed by a Kenyan commander.
The assistant chief of the KDF in charge of operations and training Major General Frank Nthenge said on Friday that the military will continue training officers on the planning and conduct of peace operations.
The course involves training in the legal aspects of peace operations, the cycle of conflict including identification, prevention, intervention, and resolution and also peace building.
Maj Gen Nthenge was speaking at the Defence College, Karen where he closed a two-week course expected to equip participants with the necessary skills to confront the challenges of contemporary conflicts.
“Peace operations cannot be undertaken in isolation from political, economic, social and humanitarian considerations,” he said.
The participants were senior officers drawn from the military, police and civilian establishments from nine African countries.
These training opportunities which have been funded by the UK Government over the last five years, he said, would allow development of critical mass of senior leaders capable of confronting challenges of contemporary conflicts.
