MANDERA (Xinhua) --
A Kenyan military officer was killed
and an unknown number of others injured Monday after an armoured
personnel carrier they were travelling in ran over a roadside
explosive in Mandera county in the northeast of the country
bordering Somalia, a government official said.Regional
government official Mohamud Saleh confirmed the incident at
Damasa area in Lafey sub-county which happened at around 11 am.
Saleh said the armored vehicle was being used in the
construction of the Kenya-Somalia border security wall. He said
the blast happened while the soldiers were on a routine patrol
of the porous border.
"It’s true the incident happened. I am waiting for brief from
the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) on all the details. An APC ran
over an Improvised Explosive Device, killing at least one
personnel on board," Saleh said.
He said no arrest has been made so far, adding that more
security officers have been mobilized and are pursuing the
attackers.
The region is an Al-Shabaab hotspot area where security
vehicles have run over explosive devices in the past.
In June last year, a Safaricom mast was destroyed by Al-Shabaab
militants in a midnight raid as they flee inside Somalia.
The Somali militants have been targeting military and police
vehicles either by laying an ambush or planting explosives on
the road in northeast region especially in Mandera and Garissa
counties.
A number of security personnel have died as a result of the
landmine attacks, including IEDs placed on roadsides by Al-Shabaab
militants.
Kenya is currently engaged in the fight against the militia
group in southern Somalia where its soldiers under the African
Union Peacekeeping Mission (AMISOM) have been registering
impressive gains.
