More black flag terror in Kenya

17 June 2014 - 02:11 By © The Daily Telegraph
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Gunmen flying the flag of Somalia's al-Qaeda affiliate roared into a Kenyan coastal town and opened fire indiscriminately on pedestrians, shop owners and people watching the World Cup, killing at least 49.

Two banks, government buildings and a dozen vehicles were set alight as the Islamist terrorists worked their way through the town of Mpeketoni, close to Lamu island, until Kenyan forces repelled them hours later.

It was the boldest raid inside Kenya to be blamed on al-Shabab since its terror strike on the Westgate Shopping Centre, in Nairobi in September, when more than 70 people were killed.

Three minibus taxis carrying al-Shabab's black flag and full of armed men in balaclavas arrived soon after dark on Sunday. The men shot people walking on the roads into Mpeketoni before continuing into town and opening fire.

"Witnesses heard the attackers shouting 'Allahu akbar' and about jihad as they moved through the town. This is al-Shabab's work," said a senior police officer. But al-Shabab has denied responsibility.

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