Kenya buys drone to fight against Al-Shabab

The Kenyan government is buying unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) popularly referred to as a drone in its fight against  Al-Shabab from the United States government.

The details of the purchase of the state of the art equipment that will cost the government $9.86 million were leaked by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)  in a report released on Monday, February 22.

“ScanEagle was ordered by the Kenyan government at a cost of $9.86 million (KSh1 billion),” said SIPRI military expenditure programme director Samuel Perlo-Freeman.

The drone is manufactured by Isintu a subsidiary of Boeing and has been used by the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The report adds that  the drone is expected to reach Kenya in September 2016 and will used in combat surveillance in Somalia.

“The drone will be used in surveillance and reconnaissance duties by KDF especially in Somalia as it can gather accurate information on movements and positions of Al-Shabab fighters as well as providing photos of militia facilities” said source close to Kenya military,

The unmanned aircraft, dubbed ScanEagle, will enable Kenyan security forces to conduct real-time surveillance on Somalia-based Al-Shabab alongside other major crime scenes inside Kenya’s borders.

The drones are one the most well used aircrafts by the US military especially the marines and have been used in combat surveillance in Iraq and Afghanistan.