MANDERA, Kenya, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Kenyan military officer was killed and an unknown number of others injured Monday after an armoured personnel carrier they were travelling in ran over a roadside explosive in Mandera county in the northeast of the country bordering Somalia, a government official said.
Regional government official Mohamud Saleh confirmed the incident at Damasa area in Lafey sub-county which happened at around 11 am.
Saleh said the armored vehicle was being used in the construction of the Kenya-Somalia border security wall. He said the blast happened while the soldiers were on a routine patrol of the porous border.
"It's true the incident happened. I am waiting for brief from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) on all the details. An APC ran over an Improvised Explosive Device, killing at least one personnel on board," Saleh said.
He said no arrest has been made so far, adding that more security officers have been mobilized and are pursuing the attackers.
The region is an Al-Shabaab hotspot area where security vehicles have run over explosive devices in the past.
In June last year, a Safaricom mast was destroyed by Al-Shabaab militants in a midnight raid as they flee inside Somalia.
The Somali militants have been targeting military and police vehicles either by laying an ambush or planting explosives on the road in northeast region especially in Mandera and Garissa counties.
A number of security personnel have died as a result of the landmine attacks, including IEDs placed on roadsides by Al-Shabaab militants.
Kenya is currently engaged in the fight against the militia group in southern Somalia where its soldiers under the African Union Peacekeeping Mission (AMISOM) have been registering impressive gains.
