AL SHABAB SYMPATHIZERS SUSPECTED TO HAVE CAUSED CARNAGE
Kenyas determination to pursue Al Shabab terrorists deep into Somalia and joining AMISOM, the United Nations and African Union peace keeping mission in that war torn country, has, inspite of visibly increased vigilance across Nairobis public places, office buildings, shopping centres and hotels, cost the country dearly again, when yesterday evening an explosion ripped through an upcountry bus terminal along Landies Road.
Like at the very early stage of the invasion by the Kenyan military in hot pursuit of the known Al Qaida affiliate group, several explosives were thrown from a fast moving vehicle into the crowds, before it sped off into the night just after 8 p.m. last night.
At the time of filing this report at least four dead had been taken to the city mortuary while over 40 were injured and are receiving treatment in the main Nairobi hospitals, with several of them in critical condition.
Emergency services, already on a state of high alert, responded instantly when the news broke, incidentally only hours after a joint army and police press conference in Nairobi had called on the public to be extra vigilant as the threat of retaliatory attacks of this nature was considered still high, an accurate description as it came to pass the same evening.
This is the third such attack since Kenya, on the 16th of October last year, entered Somalia with the permission of the Transitional Federal Government to pursue militants and terrorists which had turned the southern part of Somalia into an Al Qaida training ground and staging area for attacks on neighbouring Kenya, also used by pirates in league with the Islamic militants to attack international shipping from their safe havens, but the pincer movement by Kenyan, AMISOM and Ethiopian troops against militant strongholds has increasingly driven them back and confined their area of operation. Al Shababs normal tactic then appears to attempt retaliatory terror attacks abroad, and it is understood, after extensive calls with Kampala, that vigilance there has been stepped up too once again in the wake of the Nairobi incident last night with the same in Burundi, which also has troops in Somali and has been threatened before.
From usually well informed sources in Nairobi it was learned that the Kenyan security forces are following leads with apparently descriptions of the vehicle being used to track the attackers down and that known potential hideouts were being combed by a dragnet of regular police and special anti terrorism units to flush out Al Shabab sympathizers. Some of them, according to local media reports, went on line soon after the blasts promising more of the same. Specialized security personnel are pursuing these leads too by tracking down IP addresses and locations of possible internet cafes or else triangulate the signal location of USB modems to give clues to teams now deployed across the city in pursuit of the perpetrators of this latest crime against humanity. Condolences are expressed to the families and friends of the victims of this latest cowardly attack, which however, going by past experience, will only strengthen the resolve of the Kenya government and people to continue fighting and hopefully defeating the terrorists during ongoing operations inside Somalia.
Report filed from Nairobi / Kenya at 01.32 local time.
