Al-Shabaab terrorist killed as gunmen attack police camp in Lamu
An Al-Shabaab terrorist was killed while a police officer suffered minor injuries when about 20 gunmen attacked a security camp in Lamu County.
According to Lamu County Coordinating Police Commander Abdullahi Adan, the Shabaab terrorists attacked the Mangai Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) Camp in Basuba, Lamu East, on Thursday at around 2am.
Mr Adan confirmed that an AK-47 riffle and three magazines full of ammunition were seized from the terrorists as they fled after being overpowered by the police.
He said the militants, who were armed with rocket-propelled grenades, tried to force their way into the camp with the intention of bombing it.
He said they were also shooting randomly at the camp.
He said the situation was, however, under control since there was a heavy presence of security officers, including the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), the various police units including the RDU, General Service Unit (GSU) and Border Patrol Police Unit.
MORE REINFORCEMENTS
“At around 2am, our RDU camp at Mangai was attacked by a group of over 20 Al-Shabaab militants. We managed to neutralize one Al-Shabaab militant and recovered one AK-47 rifle and three magazines full of ammunition. Security officers are currently trailing the militants,” said Mr Adan.
Mr Adan also said they were expecting more reinforcements from Nairobi.
He called on locals to be vigilant and report any person with bullet or suspicious wounds since many of the militants are said to have escaped with gunshot wounds.
This is the third time Al-Shabaab has attempted to attack the camp, with police intelligence indicating the terrorists want to steal arms.
Further, police intelligence shows that Al-Shabaab wants to destroy the camp as it was built at the heart of the route they initially relied on to cross into the country from Somalia.
Several police stations have also been established in places that were formerly used as Al-Shabaab routes to gain access into the county.
The areas include Basuba, Milimani and Mararani.
ANOTHER ATTACK
“We know they have their eyes on the Armoured Police Carrier and also what they want is access to the armoury but we can never allow them to get close to those,” said the police source.
On Sunday, 14 GSU officers escaped death by a whisker when a home-made bomb suspected to have been planted by Al-Shabaab militants blew up near their armoured personnel carrier at Baure in Lamu East.
The explosive device had been planted on the road by the militants just three kilometers from the Baure military camp.
The officers were heading to Hindi from Kiunga when they were attacked but no one was injured.
There are several security camps in Baure and the entire Basuba Division in Lamu East, including posts for the KDF, GSU, RDU, Kenya Forest Service, Kenya Wildlife Service and regular police, who are engaging in Operation Linda Boni.
The campaign was launched on September 11, 2015 with the main aim of flushing out Al-Shabaab militants believed to be hiding in the dense Boni forest.
