Kenya – once known to the world as a haven of peace – has been the target of terrorist attacks for more than a decade as our beloved nations make headlines with titles like ‘Terrorism in Kenya’.
Terrorism in Kenyastarted sometime in 1998 with the US embassy bombing in Nairobi has only gotten worse since then. In 2002 there was another bomb attack on Israeli tourists in Mombasa. And more recently, there was a ferocious duel between Kenyan forces and al-Qaeda, which linked al-Shabaab. In 2014 alone, almost ten serious attacks were carried out in Kenya between January and May, mainly in the capital Nairobi and the second largest city Mombasa. These attacks are mainly aimed at social institutions such as churches, hypermarkets and even outdoor markets. In the latest tragedy, 10 people were killed and 70 injured after two blasts at the popular Gikombaa market in the heart of the capital, Nairobi.
Terrorism in Kenya – everything you need to know
There have been several terrorist attacks in Kenya and when innocent Kenyans lose lives it becomes unfair to rank one tragedy as more significant than the others. However, with all due respect to human life, the US embassy attack, the Mombasa bombing and the Westgate attack can be called three of the most devastating terrorist attacks in the history of the country.
The 1988 attack on the US Embassy in Nairobi
This might as well be counted as the first major terrorist attack in Kenya’s history . The bombings were carried out on August 7, 1998 with simultaneous truck bomb blasts at the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. On the same day, the US celebrated its eighteenth anniversary since its armed forces invaded Saudi Arabia. Egyptian Islamic Jihad and al-Qaeda were blamed for the bombing and the al-Qaeda leader. Osama bin Laden was named to the FBI’s “Top Ten Most Wanted” list for the first time. Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah and Fazul Abdullah Mohammed have been identified as the masterminds of the attack.
The attack damaged the main target’s embassy building, as well as the nearby Ufundi building, killing a number of innocent Kenyans, mostly employees and students at a secretarial school housed there. A bus exploded near Haile Selassie Avenue and shattered windows up to a kilometer away left thousands with varying degrees of cuts and eye injuries.
The Mombasa bombings of November 2002
Four years and three months after the Nairobi bomb blast, another attack was carried out in Kenya, this time in the coastal city of Mombasa. Mombasa is known for its tourism activities, especially during and around the big holiday seasons like Christmas and New Year. This attack took place on November 28th, just days before the normally busy month of December.
An SUV intentionally crashed through a barrier in front of Israel’s Paradise Hotel, the blast killed 13 and injured 80 others. At the same time, two shoulder-launched Strela 2 rockets were fired at an Israeli charter plane as it took off from Moi International Airport. Although the missiles missed the plane, flights between Kenya and Israel were canceled as soon as the Israeli plane landed in Tel Aviv. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, Abu Taha al-Sudan and Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan were accused of masterminding the attack.
The attack on Westgate Mall, September 2013
If there had been an attack so inhuman, so heartless, and too painful to recount, it is the latest of the three; the Westgate attack of September 21, 2013, which asked the rest of the world why the terrorism in Kenya?
Unidentified gunmen found their way into the ever-busy Westgate shopping center in Westlands, Nairobi, shooting bullets at will at innocent people and later engaging Kenyan forces in a fierce exchange of fire. The Kenyan authorities were only able to regain control of the building three days later, on 24 September. At least 67 people were killed in the attack and more than 175 others are said to have been injured. All of the gunmen were said to have been killed inside the building. Meanwhile, four Somalis have been arrested in connection with the attack to clarify why there is terrorism in Kenya.
summary
If and when these terrible attacks will end is hard to say; It is clear that the country will be in for a rude shock if the Kenyan government does not find ways to deal with terror and end terrorism. You already know the al-Shabaab that is conducting the terrorist attacks in Kenya. Something must be done to stop them. And that something must be done soon.
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