NAIROBI – Kenyan authorities say they are pursuing suspected al-Shabab terrorists who killed six people early Monday in Lamu County, on the border with Somalia.
Kenya’s Lamu County Commissioner Irungu Macharia says suspected al-Shabab militants attacked and killed the villagers early Monday in the county’s Widhu area. However, there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
Macharia says they are pursuing the suspects into the forest. They might also be hiding among the population. Macharia added they are seeking the public’s help to trace the criminals.
Kenya’s Citizen TV reported at least one victim was shot, one hacked to death with a machete, and others were burned alive. VOA could not independently verify the accounts.
Widhu area residents said the attackers also torched several houses, though some residents speaking to local media questioned if the violence was the work of the Islamist militants or related to local politics.
The Nation Media group quoted some locals saying most of the attackers were carrying machetes, whereas al-Shabab militants are commonly armed with guns.
Macharia says they have deployed more security forces to the area.
He says they have beefed up security in the county to make sure that Kenyans and their properties are safe.
Al-Shabab are known to hideout in the Boni forest in northeast Kenya’s Lamu County on the border with Somalia.
The Somali terrorist group launches sporadic attacks on villages and public transport.
On Saturday, a man riding a motorcycle was killed when he ran over a roadside bomb in the Kiunga area of Lamu, on the border with Somalia, near the Indian Ocean coast.
Kenyan security officials blamed al-Shabab for setting off the explosives.
