A massive security operation has been launched in Kitui South Game Reserve following the killing of two people.
A Somali herder and a member of the Kamba community were murdered on Sunday in an ethnic clash. Kitui county commissioner John Ondego yesterday said the crackdown will flush out Somali pastoralists illegally grazing their camels and other livestock in the reserve and Kambas occupying parts of the protected area.
“We target illegal herders and all people who have set up their homes in the game reserve. They must be moved out for peace and tranquillity to be restored,” he said on the phone, adding that some people from each of the warring sides had been arrested.
Security officers were deployed in the vast reserve on Sunday soon after the deaths were reported. Before the attacks, Jonathan Ngau, a teacher at Kalambani Primary School in Mutha ward, was speared in the ribs by a suspected Somali herder. Ngau was travelling on a bodaboda. The rider suffered a gunshot injury in the thigh as he tried to flee. The Star established that Hussein Abdullahi and Farah Aden were apprehended in relation to their attack.
Following the hostilities, many families, especially from Musenge, Ikandangi, Ingoo, Kyeni and Kalambani villages, fled their homes and camped at the Mutha police station. Ondego urged them to remain calm as they restore order.
(Edited by F'Orieny)
