As State warns of deepening risks, terrorists infiltrate refugee camps

Tents at the UNHCR's Ifo Extension camp outside Dadaab. [Courtesy/AP] Youth unemployment, terrorism, cases of cattle rustling and influx of refugees, still pose security risks, a new report shows. Also, the threat of having a spill-over of conflicts from refugees home countries further threaten the security of the country, a report handed over to Parliament by President William Ruto, which outlines the state of security in Kenya, says. The report says that some refugees have been infiltrated by the Al-Shabaab terror group and have been used to traffic arms, contraband and human smuggling. The report, which covers September 2024 to August 2025, further reveals that there is tension between the 850,000 refugees currently being hosted in the country and host communities in the Dadaab and Kakuma camps as well as urban areas. The majority of asylum seekers in Kenya are from Somalia, South Sudan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the report, cases of cattle rustling saw the killing of 93 people compared to 84 in 2023 to 2024 while 71 injuries were recorded compared to 65 and 288 suspects arrested compared to 209. The government concedes that mistrust between communities and law enforcement agencies, politics, poor infrastructure, retrogressive cultural practices and small arms were worsening the situation. The report calls for the improvement of equipment to help adapt in the harsh climate where the vice is rife. It calls for cross-border cooperation with neighbouring countries to dismantle transnational cattle theft networks and the addressing of inter-community land boundary-related conflicts and disputes. During the period under review, a total of 97,366 cases were reported between September, 2024 and August, 2025 as compared to 103,536 cases during a similar period in 2023/2024, representing a decrease of 6,170 cases. In tackling general crime, the report says that police are inadequately equipped to fight crime, including technological gaps in combating cybercrimes. The high levels of youth unemployment contributed to vulnerability to crime and radicalization and the increased use of social media for criminal purposes. On matters terrorism, the report says that Al Shabaab and Islamic State terror groups have been levering on new technology to radicalize, recruit and spread propaganda. Al Shabaab continued carrying our targeted kidnappings and killings and the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) for attacks. The terror groups main source of financing was cited to be illegal taxation and extortion but also continued donations from local and international sympathizers. Mandera, Lamu, Garissa and Wajir counties remain the hotspots for the terror groups attacks. "A total of 61 terror-related incidents were reported, including 15 active shooter incidents, 20 IED attacks, nine kidnapping incidents, affecting 119 victims." The report shows that 20 police officers were killed, 63 were injured and one was kidnapped by the terror group in the four counties. Instability in Somalia was cited as one of the reasons the terror group was gaining ground. Local and international facilitators were cited as key enablers of attacks with Al Shabaab said to be using refugee camps as recruitment grounds. The bad state of the economy was a perfect ground for religious extremism with the report saying that slow uptake for registration saw people use fellowships and study groups to further their agenda. Some of the groups targeting vulnerable Kenyans use Community-Based Organizations to mask their intent and some use encrypted platforms to indoctrinate and recruit. "Psychological vulnerability, mental health challenges and lack of awareness among the citizenry continue to increase susceptibility to religious extremism." Low public awareness and ignorance of cyber threat saw Kenyans become easy targets for criminals. Other factors include the evolvement of cyber threats and weak co-ordination between public and private sectors to address the vice. The report shows that Kenya is being exploited as a source of transit and destination of trafficked and smuggled persons. "The persistence of this vice was attributed to inadequacies in law enforcement and border management, economic vulnerabilities especially among the youth due to unemployment as well as fragility of some states within the region," the report says. "Smuggled persons during the period under review included Kenyans, Somalis, Ethiopians, Eritreans, Burundians, Rwandese, Congolese, Nigerians, Tanzanians and Ugandans," the report adds. The country is also a transit point for narcotics destined for Southern and Western Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas using ungazetted entry points along Kenya's border with Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda. "During the period under review, drug trafficking and substance abuse was prevalent in Mombasa, Migori, Kwale, Kilifi, Lamu, Nairobi, Kisii, Isiolo, Marsabit and Garissa counties, where Bhang, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine among other synthetic drugs were trafficked and consumed," a section of the report reads. Police arrested some 6,052 of which 5,515 were male and 547 females trafficking heroin, cocaine, Cozepam, Diazepam, Bhang Mdma and Methamphetamine. Politicians and businesspeople are said to be covertly facilitating their communities to acquire illicit arms using Uganda-West Pokot; Tanzania-Migori; Somalia-Mandera-Marsabit-Isiolo; and Ethiopia-Marsabit-Isiolo-Meru-Nairobi routes to smuggle them into Kenya. "Some politicians and local business owners continued to covertly facilitate their communities to acquire illicit arms for offensive and defensive purposes," reads the report. Counties along the border with Somalia, South Sudan, Uganda and Ethiopia were hardest hit by incursions due to the porous nature of Kenyas border. Kenya's maritime domain is vulnerable to a range of security threats which the report says undermines national security and threatens economic stability and regional maritime governance. "The reporting period was marked by increased incidents of Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported (IUU) fishing; maritime trade disruption and a resurgence of piracy; and inland water security incidents." The reports cite the increase in piracy activities due to influence from the Houthi rebels as the reason for the high shipping fees which has in turn inflated the price of goods. Fish stocks in Kenyan waters were getting depleted due to illegal fishing by both foreign and domestic vessels and this had also damaged marine ecosystems. Actions by Uganda to ban scoop nets in early 2024 saw an influx of artisanal fishermen in Kenyan waters and most did not have legal documentation. "In Lake Turkana, violent clashes occurred on 22nd February, 2025, between armed Dassenach fishermen from Ethiopia and Kenyan fishers, reflecting longstanding tensions in the Omo Delta. On Lake Victoria, Kenyan fishermen have continued to face arrests and seizure of gear by Ugandan and Tanzanian authorities." The report recommends the increase of patrols and surveillance in marine waters, develop laws to strengthen conservation, enforce CCTV installation on commercial fishing vessels and upgrade the vessel monitoring system in Mombasa. Protests were cited as some of the causes of insecurity which police blamed on security gaps created by the failure to notify of planned demos. "Criminal gangs and hired goons capitalized on the situation to infiltrate the demonstrations, leading to violence, looting and destruction of property." The report blames the mainstream media saying it played a significant role in mobilizing and coordinating protests and the spread of hate speech, propaganda and misinformation.

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