A Lone gunman fired successive shots at a alighting occupants of a police helicopter in Kalpat area in Nadome.
The gunman narrowly missed Kenya’s deputy Inspector General of Police Grace Kaindi, Rift Valley Regional Coordinator Osman Warfa, Assistant Deputy IG Administration Police Peter Pamba and Silale MCA Nelson Lotela.
A Police reservist shot the gunman dead before he could reload his weapon and fire again. Intelligence reports confirms the lone gunman’s targets were the police chiefs.
The senior police officers had flown to Kalpat area in Nadome to assess the security situation after cattle raiders killed about 60 civilians mainly children and women.
Intelligence Analysis
The above set of events draws out a picture of a weak security system in the area, lack of a strategic and tactical capability by the police, and links between cattle rustling with government or politicians.
Political Connections
The connection between the cattle rustlers with government or politicians is evident through the gunman’s actions. He had prior information about the police helicopter including the landing point besides time of arrival.
The officers itinerary, often shared with local leaders, was told away to the elements of cattle rustling rings. This gave him enough time to identify a vantage position and its tactical advantage.
Cattle rustling is associated with the lucrative meat trade. Intelligence reports show the high quality meat is exported to gulf regions. These meat traders have both political and local connections. They pull these cattle rustling operations. The planning and execution of the operations is meticulous. This coupled by ethnic killings during the raids clean up the trade aspect and leaves the ethnic label.
Strategic and Tactical Capability
Lack of strategic and tactical capability by the police deployed in the conflict theater is identified by the failure to secure the helicopter during the landing incident and most significantly, subsequent attacks on GSU and RDU units deployed to theater, particularly when they are on transit for missions.
Resolving ethnic terrorism requires use of both policing and political intervention. Intelligence led operations are the key but we have seen both strategy and tactical failure throughout.
Police are not scouting the region. They aren’t conducting surveillance and reconnaissance. They just want to use the policy of intimidation. Without use of the above, the police will always be killed by bandits who often take positions on vantage points that give them both strategic and tactical advantage.
Weak Political-Security Policy
The levels of ethnic animosity in the region is not that high. The Pokots are particularly tolerant. The Turkana’s want peace and social stability.
Pokot’s react violently when they ran out of patience with persistent attacks. These elements of the conflict shed light on what factors the ethnic terror.
Raft Measures and Solutions
Observatories monitoring aggressive activities in the region can provide early warning when tolerable limits are nearly breached. Police and politicians can have both social and tactical advantage against a possible attack.
By taking up positions in points that provide them with cover, tactical advantage, and most important capability to put the criminals down, police can constantly preempt the threat posed by cattle rustling in the North Rift effectively.
Such a persistent strategy will demoralize the raiders and bring back a sense of security in the region. On the long term, the strategy not only ends the tradition, but kills the illegal meat trade, brings back social-integration and parity besides socioeconomic.
