Kenyan military says roadside blast injures soldier in coastal region

Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers patrol Kiunga village near Kenya-Somalia border in Lamu County, Kenya, May 3, 2021. Two people were killed and one critically wounded after a vehicle they were traveling in ran over an explosive device suspected to have been planted by Al-Shabab militants along the Kenya-Somalia border on Monday. (Photo by Joy Nabukewa/Xinhua)

NAIROBI, Kenya - Kenya Defense Force (KDF) spokesperson Esther Wanjiku said the incident took place between Milimani and Baure areas in Lamu East.

Wanjiku said an unknown number of soldiers operating under the security operation encountered the IED attack that was planted by suspected Shabab terrorists while on routine patrols.

The injured soldier has been evacuated to the Defense Forces Memorial hospital in Nairobi for specialized treatment, she said in a brief statement.

The KDF pledged to continue to cooperate with other authorities under the Boni Enclave Campaign in parts of Lamu and Garissa counties in northern Kenya to restore peace and security while also reducing the threat posed by al-Shabab.

Unconfirmed reports said two KDF soldiers were killed and some others seriously wounded in the IED explosion on Tuesday.

“Two were killed and we saw their bodies,” one source said. “There were also a number (of others) who were seriously injured when we arrived at the scene.”

Baure is located inside the Boni forest, where the government has since 2015 been undertaking a security operation dubbed Linda Boni to flush out Shabab militants who hide in the dense forest and carry out attacks in the coastal region.