Rib to rib with al Shabaab

There is no movement at night in Mandera Town where a dusk-to-dawn curfew has been imposed since last year, and where gunfire and explosions from across the border are the order of the night.


A narrow path separates Kenya from Somalia, and across the border, the sound of gunfire and explosions every night from the middle of the terraced houses of Bula Hawo in Somalia sends shivers down the spines of the authorities and Mandera Town residents alike.
Just a few steps away from the unmarked porous border, two Kenya border police officers position themselves inside a barricaded compound. They are rib to rib with war torn Somalia, a place largely ruled by the hard-line Islamist al Shabaab.“You see we are here in the office. We cannot move around with guns. These guys are suspicious; they have intelligence crawling all over the place,” said one policeman, in reference to members of al Shabaab.In the neighbouring Bula Hawo, one of the strategic towns in Gedo region of Somalia, the dreaded group rules with an iron fist, often sending its rank and file to monitor border security — more than Kenya does.
Somali gunmen often prowl along the borderline and their presence is testimony to the fragile security in much of Kenya’s lengthy border. Over the years, the worsening situation of Somalia has rendered the security of Mandera all but non-existent. Residents live in fear.Late last year, the government imposed a night curfew following renewed tribal clashes, after an upsurge of al Shabaab action had worsened an already fragile security.“For the past one year, we have done a security scale up, including a night curfew that has tremendously improved the security of the town,” Mandera police officer Odhiambo Akelo says.The long nights in this town on the very tip of the Kenyan landmass are boring. Living in the town is like living in no man’s land, where police prey for prowling gunmen and command the dusty streets where the deafening silence means endless fear.Residents here remain trapped at night due to insecurity. Vehicular and human traffic is not allowed during the night, and residents stay indoors as police conduct daily searches and seizures.
Uneasy relationship

As the security search intensified over the months, many people here had an uneasy relationship with security agents, who are often accused of harassment.“Police take advantage of the situation and conduct unreasonable searches,” says Ahmed Abdi a resident.For many in Mandera Town, their freedom of movement is hampered by the spill-over of insecurity inherited from war-torn Somalia.“Mandera is a grisly conflict zone where people live in constant fear and it is a town that is totally on the verge of collapse because of Somalia,” says another resident Ahmed Abdi. “I think we are the worst affected by the lawlessness in Somalia.”
Across the Horn of Africa and Great Lakes Region, Mandera appears to be bearing the fullest brunt of the endless conflict more than any other town in the two regions.
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