Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab rebels on Monday claimed responsibility for the Mpeketoni attack in lamu that left 48 people dead.
A statement from the group said the attack in Mpeketoni, near Lamu was revenge for the “Kenyan government’s brutal oppression of Muslims in Kenya through coercion, intimidation and extrajudicial killings of Muslim scholars.”
It also condemned the “Kenyan military’s continued invasion and occupation of our Muslim lands and the massacre of innocent Muslims in Somalia.”
“To the tourists visiting Kenya we say this: Kenya is now officially a war zone and as such any tourists visiting the country do so at their own peril,” the group said.
“Foreigners with any regard for their safety and security should stay away from Kenya or suffer the bitter consequences of their folly. You have been forewarned!” it added.
“We hereby warn the Kenyan government and its public that as long as you continue to invade our lands and oppress innocent Muslims, such attacks will continue and the prospect of peace and stability in Kenya will be but a distant mirage. Do not ever dream of living peacefully in your lands while your forces kill the innocent in our lands,” it said.
The Al-Shabaab statement vowed more attacks would follow.
AUTHOR: EDNER MAGANGI