Kenya holds 29 Ugandans over al-Shabaab links

Jan 13, 2012

Kenyan Police questioned 29 Ugandans who were allegedly headed for Somalia to join the al-Shabaab.

By Vision Reporter

Kenyan anti-terror Police questioned 29 Ugandans who were allegedly headed for Somalia to join the terror group al-Shabaab.

Kenya’s The Standard newspaper on Thursday reported that the 27 men and two women were arrested in a house in Maji Mazuri, Kasarani area.

The Police were reportedly tipped that the suspects had been brought there by an al-Shabaab agent who wanted to facilitate their movement to Somalia.

When the officers raided the house, the suspects told police they had been promised to be taken to Somalia where they would get better jobs. 

By Thursday, the Kenyan anti-terror police were still looking for the agent amid fears of the increasing number of foreigners seeking to go to Somalia to join the terror group.

The officers also interrogated the suspects as they sought help from Uganda over their status.

No terror links

The Standard however, quoted the Nairobi Area head of criminal investigation department, Peter Muinde, saying they were contemplating releasing the Ugandans because there was no evidence to show they were headed for Somalia or that they had terror links.

“We want to know their motive and whether there are others here or on the way,” he was quoted.

Muinde observed that the suspects could have been victims of human trafficking, but that they would not take chances in this era of terrorism and that is why they were questioning them. 

In October last year (2010), Kenyan authorities arrested nine Ugandans on suspicion that they were headed for Somalia. 

The Ugandans claimed to be Muslim evangelists in the coastal town of Malindi.

 

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