Tension in Lamu as 100 suspected al-Shabaab gunmen invade village, lecture locals and offer free dates

Tension is high in a village in Lamu County after about 100 gunmen raided there, lectured locals and offered them free dates.

The gang, believed to be members of the terror group al Shabaab, went to Mangai village, which is part of the larger Boni Forest and assembled the villagers on Saturday, March 15 evening before embarking on their mission.

The gunmen introduced themselves as members of the outlawed group and were believed to have taken advantage of the holy month of Ramadhan to radicalize locals and spread their extremist ideology, locals said.

There were no casualties in the invasion, said Lamu County Commissioner Wesley Koech.

The militants distributed dates (fruits) to villagers before they left.

This is not the first time they do the same. The gang usually crosses from the nearby Somalia through the porous border before embarking on their mission in the expansive Boni Forest.

A joint security team was Sunday dispatched to the area to flush out the militants.

The gunmen entered Mangai village, which is about 80 kilometers southwest of the Mangai Border Patrol Unit camp, police said adding the gang knew the location of security agents.

They had earlier probed the camp before splitting into two groups, police said.

One group remained behind to watch the camp as the other entered the village for their mission.

The gunmen were mostly armed with AK47 rifles and hooded, witnesses said.

They stormed the village and lectured locals for about 30 minutes about the importance of respecting Islam and its teachings.

They also the locals not to cooperate with the government, witnesses said.

Before leaving, they warned locals not to tell the police or the military about their presence in the village.

Police have called on locals to share information about the gunmen with security agencies so as to help flush out the militants.

Lamu has for years been the scene of terrorist attacks targeting both locals and security officers.

The most devastating strike happened in Mpeketoni and Kibaoni on the night of June 15, 2014, when more than 90 people were killed.

The area is under special operation code named Operation Linda Boni to flush out the terrorists there.

Masalani, Sangailu, Ijara and Handaro are all within the Linda Boni Operation zone.

The multi-agency operation seeks to flush out al-Shabaab militants from Boni Forest.

More than 100 security agents have been killed in Lamu, Garissa, Wajir and Mandera Counties in IED attacks in past years.

This has affected development at large.

The government has been developing the area as part of efforts to address the menace. This includes the development of the local port, construction of roads and other social amenities, which have opened up the area for business and other operations.