MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – At least 20 heavily armed suspected al-Shabaab fighters have attacked a police camp in Mandera County near Kenya’s border with Somalia.
According to a statement, the heavily armed militants are said to have approached the Quick Response Unit (QRU) camp of the Administration Police from the northwest in the Friday morning incident.
They fired towards the camp within proximity of 100 meters before they were repulsed, police say.
“Officers who were alert responded swiftly and engaged them for 15 minutes,” a report reads in part.
There were, however, no reported injuries or fatalities during the gun battle.
“No injuries on our side and all officers accounted while on the enemy side pending confirmation during clearance at first light. Currently situation under control,” it further states.
The fighters are said to have fired explosives at the camp prompting officers to respond.
“The attack was well repulsed, the explosives that were fired by the militias-one rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) landed inside the camp and the other outside causing a fire inside and outside the camp,” police said.
Al-Shabaab has been carrying out dozens of attacks in areas along Kenya’s border with Somalia since 2011.
The group killed dozens of non-locals in Mandera, Wajir and Garissa counties. Al-Shabaab vowed to take revenge on the Kenya government for the deployment of its troops in Somalia.
Kenya has thousands of soldiers working under the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia.
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