Suspected Al Shabaab gunmen kill chief in Wajir

Gunmen suspected to be members of the Al Shabaab militant group killed a chief in the North-Eastern border town of Wajir on Saturday night.

Mohamed Barre Abdullahi of Erib location in Wajir South sub-county was shot dead by armed men while returning from a local mosque where he had gone for evening prayers.

Wajir County Police Commander Samuel Mukindia said the deceased was slain about 500 metres from the mosque at around 8.45pm.

"The gunmen, whose number couldn't be established, seem to known their victim well as they shot him dead without hurting three other people who were walking with him at the time of his killing," he said, adding that the motive of the attack is yet unknown.

The police chief, however, said the administrator was not among chiefs in the county who had received death threats from Al Shabaab sympathisers.

Death threats

Mukindia said security personnel who were on patrol responded to the sound of gunshots, but the suspects disappeared into nearby crowded settlements.

Al Shabaab has threatened several local chiefs, their assistants, religious leaders and other civil servants.

In April this year, the militants killed Chief Muktar Maalim Ibrahim of Arabia, Mandera County, after pulling him out of his vehicle, which was heading to Mandera.

During the same month, gunmen stormed Garissa University College, killing 142 students and six security officers. Al Shabaab later claimed responsibility for the attack.

The killing of the chief comes only three days after the Government lifted a curfew imposed in the region to allow Muslims attend night prayers as they observe the Holy Month of Ramadhan.