OSINT SUMMARY
Kenya’s security officers confirmed that on Thursday 18, 2016, they are interrogating a university student who was arrested while trying to travel to Libya to join the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL).
According to anti-terrorism police officers, the student identified as Hassanein Ahmed Basty is a Kenya and had just completed first at University of Nairobi studying biochemistry. Basty was arrested by ATPU on Tuesday.
ATPU said have unearthed a syndicate of extremist online recruiters targeting university students to join the armed extremist groups in Libya and Middle East.
Jihadist recruiters lure the vulnerable youths with promise of well-paying jobs in foreign countries only to find themselves forcefully recruited into these extremist groups.
According to investigators, Basty had used part of his university fees to buy his ticket to Sudan. Sudan is one of the transit routes to the war-torn country of Libya, Basty but was arrested before he accomplished his mission.
Security experts warns that Kenya is a soft target for terrorist activities and the menace has evolved since 1998 as radical groups from Horn of Africa infiltrate the country and conducting attacks.
The public has been reminded to remain vigil, report any suspicious individuals to the police. Sharing intelligence (HUMINT)/information with security authorities will come a long way in preempting militant threat.
