Garissa: Two police officers from the Border Patrol Unit died while five others are in critical condition after their vehicle ran over an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) along the Liboi-Kulan road in Garissa today during a patrol. Local authorities said that the IED is suspected to have been planted by the Al-Shabaab terrorists.
According to Kenya News Agency, the vehicle was badly damaged during the mid-morning incident where one officer died on the spot while the other was pronounced dead on arrival at Dadaab sub-county hospital. Liboi Deputy County Commissioner Justus Motanya confirmed the incident and said arrangements were being made to transfer the critically injured to Nairobi for further medical care.
Liboi is along the Kenya-Somalia porous border where suspected militants are believed to cross over from Somalia to carry out attacks in the country. This is the latest terrorist attack after a period of relative calmness following intensified intelligence-led security operations in the northeastern region.
Last month, police from the elite Special Operations Group (SOG) stopped eight Al-Shabaab terrorists who were trying to set up IEDs along the Welmerer-Yumbia area in Garissa. The team swiftly responded to information reported by the local community members that the terrorists had been spotted while attempting to set up the explosives on the road.