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Government: Al-Shabaab has been wiped out of Lamu

By KNA October 21st, 2015 1 min read

The Al-Shabaab threat that has plagued  Lamu County for over two years has been eliminated, County Commissioner Fredrick Ndambuki has declared.

Mr Ndambuki said the combined force of the Kenya Defence Forces and the National Police Service (NPS) has been able to secure the Boni forest, through Operation Linda Boni which is in its second month.

The operation was intended to flush out Al-Shabaab militants who were suspected to be hiding in the forest.

Mr Ndambuki made the remarks while addressing Lamu residents at the Mkunguni square on Tuesday during the Mashujaa Day celebrations.

He said that the operation has been successful because no single Al-Shabaab militant was sighted.

“I want to assure Lamu residents and Kenyans at large that the Boni forest is now secure. The Al-Shabaab attacks in the county are a thing of the past,” said Ndambuki.

Mr Ndambuki added that efforts to secure the Kenya-Somalia border are on-going and the government is keen ensure that Al-Shabaab militants crosses over into Kenya.

The County Commissioner said that focus will now shift to security escorts for public service vehicles.

Residents have complained of the inordinate delays as buses wait to be provided with security escort.

“We are aware of the planned Lamu cultural festival late next month. Most visitors have expressed concern over the delays by the escorts and by the time the celebrations kick off we will make changes,” said Ndambuki.

Lamu governor Issa Timamy said that with improved security in the county, the numerous security blocks along the road should be removed to enable fast movement of goods and people along the Lamu-Mombasa route.