Thursday October 11, 2018
Kenyan security forces Wednesday intensified hunt for more than 20 militants who raided a local school in the country's border region, killing two teachers.
Mandera County Commissioner Kutswa Olaka said over 20 assailants believed to be al-Shabab militants raided the teachers' quarters in Arabia Boys Secondary School, Mandera County, about 1 kilometer away from the Kenya-Somalia border.
"The attackers hurled an improvised explosive device (IED) into one of the two blocks housing non-local teachers, consequently killing two of them," said Olaka.
He said security officers have launched a hunt for the attackers and more personnel from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), the Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU), the General Service Unit (GSU), and the Kenya Police have been deployed to the area to reinforce security.
The government administrator said the four Kenya Police Reservists who guard the school engaged the attackers who unfortunately overwhelmed them and fled as more reinforcements were being marshaled into the scene.
There are four non-local teachers in the school. Two other teachers escaped the death dragnet during the night raid.
"All the other teachers, students, and workers are safe, and the county security committee has held several meetings with the County Education Board to arrange for necessary psychological support and counseling services for them," Olaka said.
Security in Mandera remains volatile with the militia who cross over from their neighboring country responsible for the numerous attacks that have rocked the area.
Olaka said the government has summoned all security teams and commanders from the area to Nairobi next week to discuss this incident and other security challenges.
Kenya's northeastern region has suffered from the brunt of grenade and gun attacks in the last several years since Kenya took its troops to Somalia to fight the al-Shabab militia group.