The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) have joined a multi-agency team to conduct patrols in Tana River County following a series of deadly interclan attacks that have resulted in nine fatalities.
Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja has reported that the team has successfully stabilized the heightened tensions that had gripped the area in recent days. The violence began on October 4 with a fatal shooting in Anole, claiming five lives and injuring two individuals. Later that day, a retaliatory attack occurred in Nanighi Village resulting in four more deaths. The assailants employed crude weapons and set fire to several traditional dwellings known as manyattas. Initial investigations suggest that the conflict stemmed from a dispute between two communities over control of a watering point in Anole.
In response to these events, security operations have been intensified in the region. Reinforcements from the National Police Service (NPS) and KDF have been deployed, and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has initiated an investigation to apprehend those responsible for these violent acts. Inspector General Kanja has assured the public that the situation is under control and has urged local communities to maintain peace. As part of efforts to prevent further attacks, high-ranking security officials from the regional security command in Mombasa visited the area on Monday.
The conflict has spread to several villages, with warring communities utilizing firearms, bows, and arrows. Security forces have faced challenges in containing the violence which has now claimed 12 lives in the past two weeks. Tana River County Commissioner David Kosgei has confirmed the deployment of KDF troops and specialized units from the Administration Police to pacify the area. Despite these efforts, tension remains high in parts of the county. Many locals have been displaced by the conflict and have sought shelter in schools and other public facilities.
Local leaders attribute the root cause of the conflict to the relocation of flood victims, primarily farmers, from the banks of River Tana to settlements along the Garissa-Hola road. This resettlement plan, implemented by the county government, was met with resistance from pastoralists who traditionally inhabited the area with their livestock. The pastoralists view the resettlement as an encroachment on their land and claim ownership of the areas designated for the displaced farmers. The violence escalated to the KBC area, where flood victims had recently settled. In one incident, a 58-year-old village elder named Daud Shora was fatally shot.
Residents are now calling for the arrest of individuals in possession of illegal firearms and have accused some politicians of covertly inciting inter-community tensions. These recent clashes follow a separate incident last month in which at least three people were killed by unknown assailants in an IDP camp in the area. Additionally, five political leaders from Tana River County were summoned to appear before the National Cohesion and Integration Commission on October 8 regarding incitements linked to clashes between communities in neighbouring Tana River and Kitui counties. The ongoing violence in Tana River County is part of a long-standing history of inter-community disputes over resources such as land, pasture, and water.
