An attack took place along the Eledimtu-Forole Road in Marsabit County, just a few kilometres from the Ethiopian border, late last night.
An armed group ambushed a truck carrying nine passengers, resulting in the tragic deaths of seven people, including two minors from a local secondary school.
The attackers shot at the vehicle indiscriminately before setting it ablaze and burning some of the bodies beyond recognition.
The sixth victim reportedly succumbed to bullet wounds in a nearby thicket.
Among the passengers, one boy was found this morning with a fractured limb, while another person sustained burn wounds but managed to reach Forole for help.
The only other survivor, a girl in Form One, miraculously escaped unhurt and fled into the night.
Talaso Wato, a 16-year-old survivor, reported the tragic incident to Forolle Police Station.
According to locals, the suspects behind this heinous act could be remnants of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), hostile Borana neighbours, or even Ethiopian police officers, a possibility linked to tensions over the OLF militants believed to be harboured in Kenya.
The attack occurred at around 9:00 p.m.
Ibrahim Jalla, who, along with six other passengers, remains unaccounted for in the aftermath of the brutal assault, drove the lorry, a Mitsubishi with registration number KBV 474Y.
MARSABIT COUNTY
MARSABIT NORTH SUB COUNTY
FOROLLE POLICE STATION
SUBJECT: BANDITRY ATTACK INCIDENT REPORT
The reference number is REF OB NO. 02/13/08/2024 AT 0030 HRS.
An individual from TALASO WATO CMM reported the incident. An unknown armed group in jungle attire attacked a 16-year-old girl from Dakana who was boarding a Mitsubishi Lorry with registration number KBV 474Y, driven by Ibrahim Jalla, at approximately 2100 hours during the night in the Eledimu area along Forolile-TURBI Road, approximately 25 KM east of the station. The attackers shot the vehicle without warning. The minor was able to escape and flee towards Forolile. She went on to report that the group had set fire to the vehicle. The driver and six other passengers remain unaccounted for. We will receive additional reports once we visit the scene.
