Suspected al Shabaab gunmen stormed a guesthouse in Mandera town yesterday, killing 12 non-locals with grenades, bombs and gunfire.
Governor Ali Roba said there are enough security officers in the county, but “they are too terrified to patrol and respond to distress calls.”
Although al Shabaab is reported to have claimed responsibility for the attack, the government seemed to issue conflicting reports regarding who was behind the attack.
Police say among the dead were 10 people who were visiting the area for set book performances in schools and a caretaker who is a local. They were staying at the Bisharo Guest House.
Two members of the little-known theatre travelling group Pearls Quality Edutainment were killed.
The others were among 10 people rescued after the dawn attack.
The Pearls Quality Edutainment actors had been in Mandera town for three weeks, performing.
Daud Otieno, the group’s producer, told the BBC the gunmen raided the hotel early yesterday morning, shouting “actors, actors” while firing at the rooms.
Eight cast members who stayed in the hotel, which has a capacity of 20 people, survived.
