Landing the Big One

Landing the Big One

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Kenya ups border security on Somalia border


Seen here:
On September 28, Foreign Affairs Assistant Minister Moses Wetang'ula confirmed the government's anxiety when he said that the armed forces had been put on high alert following recent developments in Somalia. At the same time, the government announced that it had increased surveillance along the border, while training the border security personnel in anti-terrorism skills. Nairobi has boosted the presence of Kenyan paramilitaries—called the General Service Unit—and army soldiers and policemen at border points. Some reports say that units consisting of these groups have also been stationed at strategic locations on the Kenyan side of the border. The border geography itself is desert and semi-desert, with hot, windy and dry conditions. The conditions are harsh, like most of northern Kenya.

The Kenyan Navy, Kenya Ports Authority and the Marine Police are also on high alert and are monitoring all shipping coming into Kenya's territorial waters. Only those ships authorized to sail within the country's 200 nautical-mile limit are docking at the port in Mombasa. The military is monitoring the waters north of Mombasa in the towns and smaller ports closer to the Somalia border.

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