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Sudanese raiders kill six in Turkana attack
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Aug 31, 2008 - 6:15:19 AM

Sudanese raiders kill six in Turkana attack
 Sunday, August 31 2008 at 12:41

At least six people were killed on Saturday in Turkana by suspected Toposa raiders from southern Sudan.

The raiders armed with AK-47 rifles were reported to have struck Mogila area in Lokichogio division and stole 732 animals.

The coordinator of Lokichogio Catholic Justice and Peace Commission, Mr Peter Moru said the raiders struck three manyattas and battled it out with Kenya Police Reservists (KPR) before stealing the animals.

“The information I have is still scanty because the area is vast but when I come back I will give you more information,” he said.

Contacted for comment, Turkana North District Commissioner Jack Obuo confirmed the deaths and said will ascertain the extent of the raids.

He said Internal Security minister George Saitoti will issue a statement about the recent raids in the area.

“I am on the ground with other security officers to ascertain what is going on but the minister will issue a statement about the recent raids,” Mr Obuo said.

On Wednesday last week, 11 people were killed in a raid carried out in a manyatta in Nakalese village the same district.

Eight of those killed were Toposa raiders from southern Sudan who were shot by KPRs while three of them were Turkana pastoralists.

The following day on Thursday, Turkana pastoralists wrote a protest letter to Prof Saitoti on the increasing insecurity in the three districts of Turkana North, Central and South districts.

The pastoralists through Riam Riam Peace Network an organisation which champions for peace in the area said more than 127 people had been killed in the area in the last five years.

In a copy obtained by the Nation, the secretary of the organisation, Mr Lucas Ariong claimed that the deaths were through Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) bombings and cross border raids.

He said 81 of the deaths were through the UPDF bombings and wanted the State to intervene.

He claimed that seven people were missing while 41 had been maimed by the soldiers bombs in the process while others were forcefully evicted from their homes - manyattas in the district along the Kenya/Uganda border where the soldiers patrol is in constant fear.

Mr Ariong said the pastoralists have been bombed on three occasions in Uganda and Kenya.

He said one of the bombings was done in Kanyag’agiro in Uganda while the other two were done in Nakwanye and Morutorong along the Kenya/Uganda border. He claimed that 10, 61 and 10 were killed respectively in the incidents.

Mr Ariong said 6,074 cows, 150 camels and 1,170 sheep and goats had been stolen in the process.