MANDERA GOVERNOR ESCAPES DEATH ON SKIN OF HIS NOSE, AS 3 WERE KILLED ON GUN AMBUSH ON FRIDAY MORNING

By Adow Jubat

Suspected Somalia based Islamist terror group on Friday morning killed three people - two police officers and a civilian in a gun ambush few kilometers where 28 people were killed on November last year.

The latest attack, which occurred along Fino and Lafey  road at 9 am, a section which is prone to recurrent ambushes by armed Somali militia also left 8 others with different degree of injuries, some vital.

The road is prone to militia attacks because of its proximity to the war-scarred Somalia. The militia usually steps over the porous Kenya/Somali border stretching less than 5 kilometers from the Mandera- Fino- Arabia- Lafey road.

According to the security officials the injuries occurred as results of the impact of hand grenade lobbied at the victims’ vehicles. Three out of the eight casualties are in serious conditions.

Those who were killed and injured were in area governor’s Ali Roba’s convoy headed to Wargadud in Elwak where he was to hold a public function later in the day.

Mandera East Deputy County Commissioner Elvis Korir said the militia used Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) to hit at the governor’s security convoy trailing the governor who survived series of a similar past attempts on his life.

“The governor’s vehicle had just passed the scene of the attack few minutes to the happening of attack on the security officers scouting him to an official function at Wargadud”, Korir added.

The vehicle went to flames due to the impact of the grenade where the three dead were burnt beyond recognition.

The militias disappeared towards Somalia porous border shortly after the attack escaping with two vehicles in ill-fated convoy, one belonging to the county government and a van ferrying miraa to Mandera town.

The deputy County commissioner said a contingent of security officers including the regular police; the administration and KDF have been dispatched to the area to pursue the assailants to their hide outs.

By time of going to the press plans are underway to airlift the dead and injured to Nairobi.

The attacks comes barely a day after one of the masterminds of West gate shopping mall attack was reported killed in a US drone raid in Somalia on Wednesday.