Kenyan President Vows to Eradicate Terrorism in Border Region

NAIROBI, Xinhua: Kenyan President William Ruto on Tuesday pledged to take decisive action to eradicate insecurity in the northern region that borders Somalia to prevent cross-border incursions by al-Shabab militants.

During his four-day development tour to the restive region, Ruto directed top police officers to spearhead security operations, including efforts to bring home five local government officials who were abducted by the militants on Sunday.

“They thought that by doing so (abducting officials), they would stop us from coming here. I must make it absolutely clear that every inch of Kenya is important, and we are not going to cede an inch of our country to criminals,” he said.

Mandera South Sub-county Police Commander Julius Njeru confirmed the Sunday attack on local administrators, locally known as chiefs, saying the officials were traveling from Wargadud to Elwak for duty when they were attacked and hijacked along the way. The local administrators were later driven to Somalia since the area is near the main Kenya-Somalia border.

Police said more security officers have been deployed in the area in efforts to tame the attacks, which come amid heightened security following fears the terror group could be planning an attack after a long lull.

The border region has borne the brunt of repeated attacks from the al-Shabab militants. The attacks have been reported especially in Mandera, Wajir, and Garissa counties in northern Kenya, leaving dozens of civilians and security officials dead and wounded.