Security agencies in the Upper Eastern region of the country have embarked on intensive operations to flush out bandits and other armed criminal gangs in the counties of Marsabit and Isiolo.
Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli said the crackdown, which entered the second week, aimed to rid the region of criminal groupings behind the spate of highway robberies and killings, amid reports that a ragtag militia organisation from a neighbouring country was also involved.
Masengeli while on an impromptu visit to Marsabit, said the operation dubbed Ondoa Jangili has the sole purpose of stopping members of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) on their trucks across the Kenya-Ethiopia border.
These illegal activities, which the deputy inspector general termed as a threat to both state and national security, include smuggling and trading in firearms, illegal mining, human and drug trafficking, and abductions.
He said that intelligence has it that the militia has infiltrated and found abode among some members of local communities in Moyale, North Horr, and Sololo subcounties of Marsabit County and Merti subcounty in Isiolo County.
The presence of the militia with its unlawful activities that include abduction and raping of women has been described as the major hindrance to efforts by the government to stem insecurity and maintain peace.
Masengeli said the operation will be sustainably conducted with a human face and appealed to local residents to cooperate with the security agencies in order to make the operation a success.
“Proper arrangements have been made to ensure that the operation succeeds, and I would urge Wananchi to give support by volunteering useful information to the police,” stated Masengeli, adding that the Kenyan and Ethiopian governments have joined hands to stem the OLA menace.
On illegal mining activities believed to have been a major source of funding for OLF, the deputy inspector general declared that legal mining guidelines must be placed before such activities resumed.
By Sebastian Miriti
