LAMU, Kenya, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan security agencies said Sunday that they have thwarted a major al-Shabab attack, targeting several villagers in the coastal Lamu country on Saturday night.
Lamu county commissioner Irungu Macharia said the heavily armed militants held the Pandanguo village at ransom in a fiery gun battle that lasted for seven hours before the militants were defeated and retreated into Boni forest.
Macharia said the al-Shabab stormed the village from 10 pm on Saturday and left at about 3.30 a.m. in the morning of Sunday after being chased.
He said, however, security officers responded promptly to the attackers and managed to successfully repulse a group of over 60 armed militants.
"There is no cause for panic, we managed to defeat the enemy and no casualties from our side, and we are following crucial leads in pursuing the militants," said the government administrator.
Villagers reported that a group of about 50 militants attempted to gain entry into the village but gunshots from the police officers stationed in the village attracted other security officers stationed in the area.
According to a local farmer Hamadi Kimani who was guarding his farm, some villagers were temporarily taken hostage by the militants who inquired from him about the security situation of the village.
"I didn't mince words, I told them that the village was under heavy security from all security agencies. They told me they wanted no trouble and that all they wanted was food," Hashim said.
But in a show of defiance, the militants proceeded to Hashim's farm where they took bags of green maize away.
Macharia urged locals to be vigilant at all times and report any suspicious persons that could pose a threat to the country's security.
Tension remains high in the Pandanguo village and neighboring villages as locals have begun fleeing the area.
"Despite the assurance from the security agencies, we are afraid of our lives, since the militants are just hiding in the nearby Boni forest, and they may strike again and carry out the attacks," said Mariam Salama.
On July 5, 2017, over 200 al-Shabab militants raided the village, ransacked houses and made away with cutlery, foodstuff and clothes.
The village and many others close to the Boni forest all fall within security operation zones that are currently underway.
Meanwhile, the police are interrogating three Somali nationals, a Kenyan and an American who were arrested in Nairobi on Saturday over terrorism suspicion.
