‘60% of Mandera County controlled by Al-Shabaab,’ laments Governor Mohamed Khalif

Mandera Governor Mohamed Adan Khalif has revealed that 60 per cent of the county is under the control of Al-Shabaab militants.

Mohamed says the presence of the militants has affected service delivery in various parts of the county. 

He spoke during a security meeting to find ways of dealing with the Al-Shabaab insurgence in the North Eastern region where leaders called for concerted efforts in tackling the terrorist.

The security meeting was attended by regional commissioners and county intelligence committee members from four counties that lie along the Kenya-Somalia border. 

Leaders from areas affected by terror attacks deliberated on the increased incidence of attacks by Al-Shabaab.

The leadership of the counties of Mandera, Wajir, Garissa and Lamu said the meeting, besides coming up with resolutions on how to counter Al-Shabaab, called for community sensitization to weed out elements that support the terror outfit.

“This meeting among other issues discussed how to sensitize the local community against helping those seeking to cause insecurity in our region,” Wajir County Governor Ahmed Abdullahi said.

Lamu East MP Ruweida Mohamed added: “The attacks in our counties are not only a threat to security personnel. This is affecting the people as well, we leaders included.”

Governor Mohamed said his administration is unable to offer services to the public due to the Al-Shabaab presence in the county. 

“Mandera County, for example, 60 per cent is controlled by Al-Shabaab. We cannot offer services and are only confined at the County Headquarters,” he said.

The meeting which comes against the backdrop of heightened Al-Shabaab activity that has targeted telecommunication masts and roads plied by security personnel.

The leaders called for support from the national government to fight the group.

“While the national government is also focused on addressing national security, we need close coordination to fight Al-Shabaab and terrorism in the region,” Governor Abdullahi stated.

North Eastern Regional Commissioner John Otieno said community engagement is key to ending cross-border attacks by Al-Shabaab. 

“We understand that these attacks are necessitated by the long and porous border we share with Somalia which has been unstable for a very long time. There is, therefore, a need for community engagement,” Otieno noted.

The meeting which discussed the challenges posed by the terror group, was held in Wajir County, which is among the counties that share a border line with Somalia.