Islamic extremists killed 36 non-Muslim quarry workers in northern Kenya early Tuesday, prompting Kenya’s president to announce a security shakeup, firing his interior minister and accepting the resignation of the national police chief.
President Uhuru Kenyatta named an opposition politician and retired army general, Joseph Nkaissery, as the new interior minister, in charge of security.
“I know we are all under a lot of pressure, but I appeal to each one of us: This is not a time to be cowed by the enemy. I also call on all leaders to stand together and confront this enemy. This is a war we must win,” Kenyatta said.
Police Chief David Kimaiyo said he is taking “early retirement” for personal reasons.
Public pressure had been mounting for the two officials to be replaced following a string of extremist attacks.
Early Tuesday Islamic extremists from Somalia killed 36 quarry workers in northern Kenya, targeting non-Muslims just like an attack in the same area on bus passengers 10 days ago.
The killings happened in Mandera County near the border with Somalia and the attackers escaped. Responsibility was claimed by the militant group, al-Shabab, which has been battling for years to establish hard-line Islamic rule in Somalia.
A group of about 50 heavily armed men walked into the tented camp next to the quarry at 12:30 a.m. as the workers were sleeping and fired warning shots, said Peter Nderitu, a quarry worker.
When he heard the shooting Nderitu ran and hid in a trench from where he heard his colleagues being asked to recite the Shahada, an Islamic creed declaring oneness with God. Gunshots followed. He only rose from his hiding place two hours later when he was sure there was no more movement, he said. The bodies of his colleagues were in two rows and nearly all had been shot in the back of the head, he said.
The quarry camp is in the Koromey area on the outskirts of Mandera town.
Bodies of the 36 were flown to the capital city Nairobi, where relatives gathered at the city morgue to identify their kin.
Al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage said the latest attack was a response to Kenya’s troop presence in Somalia and alleged atrocities committed by the Kenyan army there, such as a recent airstrike. Al-Shabab claimed the airstrike killed innocent people and destroyed their property. The Kenyan government said the airstrike was in response to a Nov. 22 al-Shabab attack on bus passengers in Mandera County that left 28 people dead.
In that attack, the non-Muslims were also separated from other passengers and shot dead if they could not recite the Shahada.
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