Al-Shabaab militants attack police camp in Kenya

Nairobi Dec 31 (IANS) Al-Shabaab militants have attacked two police camps in Ijara Center located in Kenyan county of Garissa and disappeared with a police vehicle.

The heavily armed fighters from the al-Qaeda linked terrorist group on Saturday stormed the Kenya police service and administration police camps and engaged in a fierce gun battle with about 40 security officers Xinhua news agency reported.

However no casualties were reported during the gun battle between Al-Shabaab militants and Kenyan security personnel.

The militants razed down the two police camps broke into a shop and hit a Safaricom mast using an explosive and later disappeared with a police Land Cruiser.

Sources told reporters that Al-Shabaab militants had earlier been spotted roaming around Ijara centre which is near the Kenya-Somalia border before launching attack on police camps.

The latest Al-Shabaab attack came against a backdrop of enhanced vigilance by Kenyan security forces during the festive season.

--IANS
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