Kenya: Gunmen attack Mombasa university October 10

Event

Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the campus of the Technical University of Mombasa on Tuesday morning, October 10. Two female staff members were killed and several others injured, including students and two policemen. The identity of the gunmen remains unclear although early reports indicate they were Al-Shabaab militants.

Context

Al-Shabaab regularly carries out attacks in Kenya, including in coastal areas popular with tourists such as Mombasa, the capital Nairobi, and near the porous border with Somalia, where the group is based. The group has stepped up its activity along the Kenyan-Somali border region in recent months.

Al-Shabaab has been effectively at war with the Kenyan government since October 2011, when Kenyan forces engaged in the international fight against the terrorist group. The militant group, which seeks to topple Somalia's government and impose its own harsh interpretation of Sharia law, says it will continue to carry out attacks in Kenya until Nairobi withdraws its troops from the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

Advice

Individuals in Kenya are advised to report any suspicious objects or behavior to the relevant authorities and to be particularly cautious when visiting sites deemed particularly likely to be targeted in an attack (government buildings, places of worship, tourist sites, etc.). Due to these and other security concerns, many Western governments advise against travel to a number of regions in the country, including areas bordering Somalia (parts of Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, and Lamu counties), Ethiopia, and South Sudan, as well as nonessential travel to the city of Mombasa. Several Nairobi neighborhoods, including Eastleigh and Pangani, are also best avoided.