Public Works PS El Maawy’s nephew still missing after Al-Shabaab attack

Public Works PS Mariam El Maawy.

Public Works PS Mariam El Maawy’s nephew is still missing a day after they were abducted by Al-Shabaab militants at Milihoi, Lamu County.

Elite security forces were able to rescue Public Works Principal Secretary Mariam El-Maawy from suspected Al Shabaab militants who had taken her captive in a remote part of the volatile Lamu County.

Officers from the Kenya Defence Force (KDF), the General Service Unit, and the Administration Police rescued the PS about 45 minutes after she and five other top government officials were kidnapped by the gunmen at Milihoi along the Lamu-Mpeketoni highway.

At least four security officers, including Ms El-Maawy’s driver, were killed in the operation following the 3pm abductions that marked a significant escalation of the low-level insurgency the militants have waged in parts of Lamu since early 2014.

Officials have confirmed that rescue operation is ongoing.