Calls mount for Ruto to expel foreign fighters on Kenyan soil

Kenyans expect President William Ruto, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, to take responsibility for the latest spate of incursions by heavily armed groups into the country, especially after learning was disrupted at a school in Mandera.

Political analysts argue that he cannot remain silent in the face of an invasion. They say it is his responsibility to order the removal of hundreds of heavily armed Jubbaland regional forces camping at a primary school in Mandera town.

Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has demanded action from the President, arguing that allowing armed foreign forces to operate freely inside the country is unacceptable.

He cautioned that the presence of the fighters is a threat to Kenya’s territorial sovereignty and integrity and also called for the deployment of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) to push them out. 

“It cannot be that foreign forces are in our land, the government is quiet, and the Commander-in-Chief is also silent. We are asking the Commander-in-Chief to immediately order an operation to flush foreign troops out of our land,” he said.

Former Defence Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa on Sunday also questioned Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya’s deafening silence over what he said was a looming crisis in Mandera. 

“As Defence CS, Tuya should be at the forefront to publicly address the matter to protect Kenyans living along the border. It is a violation of our sovereignty and our territorial integrity. I am surprised that until now she has not said anything,” asked Wamalwa. 

Prof Peter Kagwanja, President Africa Policy Institute and People's Liberation Party (PLP) deputy leader, cautions that the President cannot evade responsibility over the ongoing crisis, because lives in Mandera and the wider region are at risk.

“They should have been disarmed because of endangering the population. There is only one person who should take responsibility, and it is the President,” says Kagwanja.

He decried the casual manner in which the issue is being treated, yet it is about ensuring state security and regional peace, especially in war-torn Somalia, whose stability is equally at stake.

If the executive requires help to deal with the situation in Mandera decisively, then it is advised to seek the necessary approvals from the legislature to execute its mandate, he argued. The president does not need to be reminded that he is the ultimate authority because there is no deputy CIC.

Mandera residents have been forced to flee their homes, some moving into neighbouring Ethiopia, fleeing the occupation. 

In December 2024, hundreds of soldiers fled southern Jubbaland and occupied Ishakani in Lamu County. Kenya again remained silent in a similar script to what is happening now. During the occupation, a school was also turned into a military camp.

Elsewhere, it was reported by local media on Saturday that tension had gripped the Islands of Lake Victoria following the arrest of 24 fishermen by the Ugandan coast guard over allegations of trespassing.

The fishermen were allegedly detained on Lolwe Island in Uganda on Wednesday last week while returning home from a trip to Ringiti Island in Homa Bay County, yet no formal protest has been lodged by the government so far. 

In February, more than 20 fishermen were killed at the Todonyang border point along Lake Turkana by suspected Dassanech militia from neighbouring Ethiopia.

Dozens of heavily armed gangs are said to have ambushed the fishermen when they were fishing and indiscriminately sprayed bullets, killing all of them in the dawn attack.

Despite making lofty pronouncements on how justice for victims would prevail, statements by Interior cabinet secretary Kipchumba Murkomen were never followed by any tangible action, and bodies of missing people have never been recovered until today.

The lawlessness is not only confined to the borders, because banditry and violent cattle theft are still rife in the North Rift region, despite the fact that both the military and paramilitary police have been heavily deployed there.

“It is not just about people being abducted and losing lives, livestock and property. It is also about the inflow of sophisticated arms in areas like Turkana and Pokot,” says Kagwanja.

Only a decade ago, clashes between Kenyan herdsmen and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) were very common along the West Pokot-Turkana Uganda border. The UPDF began making frequent incursions into Kenya to round up cattle from herdsmen as Kenyan authorities watched silently.

Although porous borders make it difficult to properly police areas near neighbouring countries, more vigilance and intelligence gathering is required to stop incursions by militia, refugees and other illegal immigrants. Much can also be gained through pacification instead of encouraging armed conflict or harbouring armed militia.

“Whenever there are problems on the other side, they cross to seek refuge among their fellow citizens on the Kenyan side, either as refugees or just immigrants. It is not something that is going to end in the near future,” says Kagwanja.

But the problem along the Somalia border has snowballed into a bigger problem over the years, first because of the Al-Sabaab terrorism menace, plus incursion of common bandits and other forms of criminal aggression.

Kenya, as in the past, toyed with the idea of building a wall along the border, a policy think tanks dismissed as not workable because of the relationships that cross-border communities have.

In Garissa and Wajir, for example, the Ogaden clan spills across into Jubbaland in Somalia. Communities in both countries, especially the elite, depend on the port of Kismayu for cross-border and international trade.

Creating a buffer zone is therefore only not feasible, apart from the fact that it will also meet stiff resistance from communities and their leaders who want their personal interests protected.

And so Kenyan power barons from the region decided to use the elite inside Somalia who can guarantee security for their interests, and it has come in the person of Ahmed Madobe.

Madobe, whose real name is Sheikh Ahmed Mohammed Islaam, is the current president of the Jubbaland state. He is currently at war with a rival government based in the Gedo region, neighbouring Mandera, which is supported by the federal government in Mogadishu.

Kenya is now caught in a catch-22 situation where it cannot do away with Madobe, who has brought some semblance of peace in southern Jubbaland and also not raffle leaders from other neighbouring clans like Marehan and Hawiye.

Jubbaland is divided between two groups of the larger Darod clan, which are Marehan and Ogaden. The Ogaden, as earlier stated, inhabit Garissa and Wajir, and so politics in Somalia always spills over into Kenya.

Online media channels in Somalia this week widely quoted Mandera governor Mohammed Adan Khalif, warning that Mandera was being turned into a battleground, after Point 1 primary school was closed after occupation by Jubbaland forces.

Garowe Online reported that Juba land regional forces could be training in northern Kenya, which could trigger tension along the expansive border, amid the ongoing operation against Al-Shabaab militants.

“Mandera cannot be turned into a battleground for Somalia. We have no interest in Somalia, except that we want peace. If the forces are not removed immediately, we will be forced to take action ourselves,” warned Khalif.