Kenya military targets gunmen

NAMANGOFULO – The Kenyan military tried to drive gunmen from the forests and caves of Mount Elgon yesterday, sealing off an area where witnesses say soldiers were firing from helicopters to try to contain violence sparked by disputes over land.

The operation some 500 kilometres northwest of the capital, Nairobi, began on Monday. It is a reminder that the resolution – at least on paper – of Kenya’s recent political crisis has not ended decades-old tensions over land and inequality that were inflamed by disputes over President Mwai Kibaki’s re-election in December.”Always in this country, people are fighting over land,” said Lucy Okello, head nurse at Kitale District Hospital, where four girls were being treated for burns after their village was attacked last week, allegedly by a group known as the Sabaot Land Defence Force, a militia group fighting for the redistribution of land in western Kenya.Thirteen other civilians were hacked, shot or burned to death in the attack.There was no claim of responsibility.A member of the SLDF, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, said at the time of the attack that his group was simply trying to “correct historical injustices.”Police stationed along the route to Mount Elgon, manning checkpoints on dusty roads lined with banana trees and onion farms, ordered journalists and aid workers to turn back yesterday.There was no word on casualties in the military operation.”This is a serious government operation,” an officer said at a checkpoint in Namangofulo, the last village before Mount Elgon’s foothills.”You only go through if you have a uniform.”In Nairobi, government spokesman Alfred Mutua said journalists were being kept out of the area for their own safety.”They (the gunmen) have been killing people indiscriminately.We don’t want them to start killing journalists and them to be caught in the line of fire.So it is basically keeping away journalists for their own security.”Mutua said the aim of the Mount Elgon operation was arresting suspects in murder and other crimes.He said some suspects had tried to flee across the border into Uganda.Abdul Mwasera, the provincial commissioner in the region, said 187 people had been arrested.”The operation will continue until these criminals surrender or are wiped out to allow peace to prevail,” Mwasera said.Several villagers outside the region sealed off by the military said they have been seeing helicopters firing for several days now, most recently before dawn yesterday.Nampa-APIt is a reminder that the resolution – at least on paper – of Kenya’s recent political crisis has not ended decades-old tensions over land and inequality that were inflamed by disputes over President Mwai Kibaki’s re-election in December.”Always in this country, people are fighting over land,” said Lucy Okello, head nurse at Kitale District Hospital, where four girls were being treated for burns after their village was attacked last week, allegedly by a group known as the Sabaot Land Defence Force, a militia group fighting for the redistribution of land in western Kenya.Thirteen other civilians were hacked, shot or burned to death in the attack.There was no claim of responsibility.A member of the SLDF, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, said at the time of the attack that his group was simply trying to “correct historical injustices.”Police stationed along the route to Mount Elgon, manning checkpoints on dusty roads lined with banana trees and onion farms, ordered journalists and aid workers to turn back yesterday.There was no word on casualties in the military operation.”This is a serious government operation,” an officer said at a checkpoint in Namangofulo, the last village before Mount Elgon’s foothills.”You only go through if you have a uniform.”In Nairobi, government spokesman Alfred Mutua said journalists were being kept out of the area for their own safety.”They (the gunmen) have been killing people indiscriminately.We don’t want them to start killing journalists and them to be caught in the line of fire.So it is basically keeping away journalists for their own security.”Mutua said the aim of the Mount Elgon operation was arresting suspects in murder and other crimes.He said some suspects had tried to flee across the border into Uganda.Abdul Mwasera, the provincial commissioner in the region, said 187 people had been arrested.”The operation will continue until these criminals surrender or are wiped out to allow peace to prevail,” Mwasera said.Several villagers outside the region sealed off by the military said they have been seeing helicopters firing for several days now, most recently before dawn yesterday.Nampa-AP