Tuesday, June 24, 2014

BBC News - Kenya coast raids: 'Five dead' in new attack near Mpeketoni

BBC News - Kenya coast raids: 'Five dead' in new attack near Mpeketoni

At least five people have been killed in an attack on the Kenyan coast, close to the scene of raids last week in which more than 60 people died.
Officials said an armed gang descended on the village of Witu, about 15km (9 miles) from the town of Mpeketoni.
No group has said it carried out the latest attack.
Somali Islamist group al-Shabab said it was behind the raids on Mpeketoni, near Lamu but President Uhuru Kenyatta has blamed local political groups.
Lamu County Commissioner Stephen Ikua confirmed on Tuesday there had been a new "unfortunate attack" overnight.
'Machetes'
An emergency security meeting has been called to assess the situation, Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper reported Mr Ikua as saying.
The "attackers used machetes and other crude weapons... the victims have cuts and injuries," local village chief Kaviha Charo Karisa told Reuters news agency.
Al-Shabab said the previous raids were in response to the presence of Kenyan troops in Somalia.
Map showing Mpeketoni in Kenya
Kenyan fighter jets launched renewed air strikes on the group's bases in Somalia in recent days as part of an offensive by the African Union force.
Officials said the assaults on the villages of Anole and Kuday left more than 80 militants dead, although this could not be independently verified.
Kenya sent troops to Somalia in 2011 to help the weak UN-backed government defeat the militants.
Last week's attacks in Mpeketoni started on the evening of 15 June as locals were watching a football World Cup match on television.
Gunmen went on to carry out further assaults in villages nearby the next day.
The Kenyan government has since put out advice urging people to watch World Cup matches at home rather than gathering in bars or others public places.
The Kenyan Red Cross says about 600 households are currently taking refuge in two camps after fleeing the violence around Mpeketoni.

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