Five Kenyan Security Officers Killed In Suspected al Shabaab Attack Near Somali Border

Five Kenyan security officers were killed Tuesday in a clash with suspected al Shabaab militants in Mandera county, near the border with Somalia, police said.

The attack occurred around midday when a patrol team from SOG Alungu encountered militants near Wantey Dam, according to a police report. Al Shabaab has spent years fighting to topple Somalia’s central government and impose its own hardline interpretation of Islamic sharia law across the Horn of Africa nation.

Police said a reinforcement team dispatched to the scene was subsequently struck by an improvised explosive device, which destroyed an armoured vehicle, though no further casualties resulted from that blast. Security forces are continuing to pursue the militants involved.

The Mandera attack fits a broader pattern of al Shabaab violence in the border region, where both military personnel and civilians are frequently targeted. Police noted that in January, militants killed a local chief and a teacher in neighboring Garissa county.