Somalia's al-Shabaab Denies Responsibility for Kenya Bomb Attack
By Hamsa Omar on March 13, 2012
Somalia's al-Qaeda-linked al- Shabaab militia denied responsibility for a
grenade attack in neighboring Kenya's capital, Nairobi, three days ago that
killed seven people.
"Contrary to the specious allegations of the Kenyan government, Harakat
al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen bears no responsibility whatsoever for the
turbulence that reigns over the country," the militia said in an e-mailed
statement today.
Four people are still missing and 52 people are in the hospital after the
March 10 blasts in which hand grenades were thrown from a moving vehicle at
passengers waiting at a bus station on the outskirts of Nairobi's city
center, the Kenya Red Cross said on its website today. Police suspect
"sympathizers of al-Shabaab" were responsible for the attack, Charles Owino,
deputy spokesman for the Kenyan police, said on March 11.
Al-Shabaab threatened to carry out attacks in Kenya after the East African
nation deployed its army in southern Somalia in mid-October to fight the
militants. The rebel group has waged a campaign since 2007 to topple
Somalia's United Nations-backed government and establish an Islamic state.
Two weeks after the Kenyan incursion began, one person died and at least 20
were injured in two separate bomb blasts in Nairobi that the government said
were inspired by al-Shabaab.
Al-Shabaab previously "cautioned the Kenyan government and warned of
cataclysmic consequences should Kenya continue to pursue the belligerent
path of invasion," the group said today. "The rampant insecurity that now
prevails in the streets of Kenya, and the wave of public anxiety therein,
conspicuously foreshadows the perilous turn of events ahead."
The U.S. Embassy in Kenya today condemned the attack and urged travellers to
be aware of security concerns in the country.
"We applaud Kenyan efforts to bring to justice those who perpetrated this
cowardly act of violence and will continue to cooperate closely with Kenyan
authorities to combat terrorism in Kenya and the region," the embassy said.
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Received on Tue Mar 13 2012 - 10:57:12 EDT
