Security agencies operating near the Kenya- Somalia border at the weekend escaped an attack after stumbling on an explosive device set on the roadside.
The improvised explosive device was ready to explode when they spotted it in Kulun, Mandera County.
Police said the officers were headed towards Bulla Hawa border when they spotted newly disturbed soil on the road with footprints.
Locals had tipped off police that there were suspicious men who had been spotted in the area on September 17 Saturday morning digging the site.
The team used detectors to detect the presence of the bomb.
Bomb experts managed to detonate it safely. Witnesses said the devise was big enough to cause deaths and destruction.
Police said they believe the bomb had been set up by al-Shabaab militants operating in the area and was targeting a team that was using the route.
This comes amid reports the terrorist group at the weekend graduated dozens of brigades ready for a mission.
A photo released by the terror group confirms the organization's top leadership is still intact and alive and features Abu Mus'ab, Ali Mohamed Rage and other commanders
In the Mandera incident, police said the al-Shabaab terrorists who set up the explosive were targeting government vehicles using the route.
It is the same place where Kenya has lost dozens of security agents in similar attacks.
Officials said the terrorists are exploiting the low-cost strategy and deploying it near forwarding operating bases or main supply routes to attack their targets.
This is happening especially in the Northern part of the country and Somalia.
The terrorists say they are conducting the attacks to put pressure on Kenyan troops in Somalia to leave.
However, security officials have heightened security operations to tame their plans. There has been a lull of attacks since after the August 9 polls but officials fear the trend may come back.
“Based on intelligence coming in, we are ready for a series of more attacks,” said one security official aware of the trend.
Security agencies have enhanced their surveillance and intelligence capabilities against suspicious individuals and organised gangs.
Kenya Defence Forces troops are among those under Amisom that are operating in Somalia.
They aim to suppress al-Shabaab activities in the region.
KDF went to Somalia in October 2011.
Kenya's incursion into Southern Somalia started after the kidnapping of two Spanish women, who were working for MSF at the Dadaab refugee camp.
The abductions were carried out by the militants who the troops planned to push away under Operation Linda Nchi.
Two years later, the troops managed to take control of Kismayo port under Operation Sledge Hammer.
The government saw the attacks as a threat to the country’s sovereignty as it targeted tourism, which is an economic lifeline.
