by CYRUS OMBATI
Thursday December 28, 2023
Communication mast destroyed during the attack in Dasheg area, Wajir county on December 27, 2023
Image: HANDOUT
Gunmen on Wednesday, attacked and demolished a communication mast in the Dasheg area of Wajir County, as confirmed by police and local residents.
This is the latest in a series of similar incidents in the region.
The assailants, believed to be members of the al-Shabaab terrorist group, used explosives to destroy the area's only communication mast, significantly disrupting local communication services.
The area lies within Tarbaj and is about 20 kilometers from Wajir Town.
Police said no injuries were reported on the National Police Reservists who were guarding the mast.
The incident affected communication in the area in general with locals Thursday rallying to address the terror menace.
Locals said they heard explosions and gunfire before learning the structures had been flattened.
Some security teams who were manning the mast retreated for safety, police said.
Police have mobilized to track down the group responsible for the recent attack on a communication mast in Wajir, amidst escalating tensions in the region.
Concerns are growing over potential further attacks, following a period of relative calm.
Authorities are actively pursuing leads on the group's activities to prevent any additional planned assaults.
This incident occurs in the context of a continued operation against the terror group by various multi-agency teams in the area.
There are fears of more such attacks after dozens of the militants crossed from Somalia to Kenya on the Garissa border.
The border region has borne the brunt of repeated attacks from the militants who are at times aided by locals.
Somalia has not had a stable government after the fall of Siad Barre in 1991.
The area is near the Somalia border and the militants usually cross at will and stage attacks before escaping back.
Al-Shabaab terrorists have been attacking places in the region especially in Mandera and Garissa counties after breaching security zones, which left dozens of civilians and security officials dead and wounded.
The terrorists have been planting explosives on the routes used by the security agencies attacking them.
More personnel have since been sent to the area and operations by the Border Patrol Unit heightened to tame the surge.