Kenyan Troops Defuse Four Roadside Bombs in Lamu, Foil Suspected Militant Attack Plots

GOOBJOOG NEWS | NAIROBI: Kenyan troops have discovered and safely destroyed four improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted along key supply routes in the coastal county of Lamu, the military said on Monday, in what it described as the disruption of multiple suspected terrorist attack plots.

The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) said the devices were found during separate patrols conducted under Operation Amani Boni, a long-running military campaign targeting Al-Shabaab militants operating in the Boni Forest near the Kenya-Somalia border.

According to the military, the first explosive device was detected by soldiers carrying out a route clearance and security patrol before it could be activated.

The troops secured the area and destroyed the device in a controlled explosion, preventing what the KDF said could have been a potentially deadly attack on security personnel or civilians using the route.

Several days later, soldiers conducting another routine patrol uncovered three more concealed roadside bombs along major supply routes in the Sarira area. Military explosive ordnance disposal specialists were deployed to the scene and safely disposed of all three devices without causing casualties or damage, the statement said.

The KDF did not say who was responsible for planting the explosives, but said the repeated discovery of IEDs along strategic transport corridors reflected the tactics increasingly employed by militant groups after sustained military operations limited their ability to carry out larger-scale attacks.

Al Shabaab, the Somalia-based militant group linked to al Qaeda, has frequently targeted Kenya with bombings and cross-border attacks in retaliation for Nairobi’s military deployment in Somalia, which began in 2011 before being integrated into the African Union peace support mission.

Lamu County, particularly areas bordering the Boni Forest, has remained one of the regions most vulnerable to such attacks because of its proximity to Somalia and the dense forest terrain, which militants have used as a hideout and transit route.

Kenya has in recent months stepped up security operations in the region, combining intelligence-led missions, aerial surveillance and regular route clearance patrols to protect civilians, security personnel and critical transport corridors.

Military officials say the measures have disrupted militant activity, although security agencies continue to warn of the persistent threat posed by roadside bombs and cross-border infiltration.

The military said the latest operation underscored the importance of intelligence-led operations and the vigilance of security personnel in preventing attacks before they occur.