How al-Shabaab militants plotted raid on Manda naval base
Al-Shabaab terrorists invaded the Magogoni-Naval base in Lamu County on January 5, 2020. Some equipment at the facility was destroyed. PHOTO | COURTESY
What you need to know:
- The dawn attack comes barely a week after the US launched air strikes targeting al-Shabaab extremists after a car bomb killed at least 81 people in Somalia.
- Four days ago, three people were killed while another three were injured when the militants ambushed a convoy of buses which were headed to Lamu from Mombasa.
Blasts and exchange of fire rent the air for almost five hours.
Plumes of dark smoke billowed out of the Manda-Magogoni Naval Base in Lamu, in a scene straight out of the movies, with locals neighbouring the base keeping indoors.
Armed al-Shabaab militants had raided the Simba Base on Manda Bay Island, which also has US military presence.
The US marines regularly train their Kenyan counterparts at the base, which they have also used to launch aerial attacks against the Somali militants.
Around 5 am on Sunday, an unknown number of attackers emerged from a small forest at Chandavai, accessed the Manda Airstrip in Lamu — which is poorly-fenced — before launching their attack that saw some equipment at the facility destroyed.
The raid brought back to the spotlight one of the country’s top tourist destinations, whose vulnerability to militant attacks saw it suffer massive losses four years ago.
FAILED ATTEMPT
The Nation understands that the militants cut power supply in Hindi before gaining access to the base.
Reports indicated that some aircraft, which were not in use, are among the equipment the militants damaged.
Two hours later, the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) aircraft responded in the attack of which al-Shabaab had claimed responsibility.
“We launched an attack at the US base that is home to hundreds of military personnel and serves as one of the many launch pads against us,” the militants said in a statement.
The dawn attack comes barely a week after the US launched air strikes targeting al-Shabaab extremists after a car bomb killed at least 81 people in Somalia. Four militants were killed in the air strikes.
KDF spokesman Colonel Paul Njuguna said a fire that broke out during the Manda attack also affected some of the fuel tanks located at the airstrip.
He said five bodies of the al-Shabaab militants were recovered after the raid, which he termed a failed attempt to breach security at the airstrip.
Sources told the Nation that the bodies are those of suicide bombers from the al-Qaeda-affiliated terror group.
JIHADIST AGENDA
Col Njuguna further said there were no casualties or injuries of Kenyan soldiers and that the airstrip was safe.
“The attempted breach was successfully repulsed. Five terrorists’ bodies have so far been found. The airstrip is safe,” he said.
The US-Africa Command Centre confirmed the attack, adding that it was “monitoring the situation and would provide an update, as facts and details emerge”.
“Al-Shabaab is a brutal terrorist organisation,” said US Army Maj-Gen William Gayler, US-Africa Command director of operations.
“It is an al-Qaeda affiliate seeking to establish a self-governed Islamic territory in East Africa; to remove Western influence and ideals from the region, and to further its jihadist agenda,” Maj-Gen Gayler added.
