The government is preparing to forcibly disarm gunmen in Samburu County in a bid to end rampant cattle rustling and the associated violent killings.
Authorities have completed profiling illegal gun holders as part of an upcoming disarmament operation ordered by Rift Valley Regional Coordinator Abdi Hassan.
The move aims to curb rising violence linked to cattle raids, ambushes and inter-communal clashes that has led to the loss of livestock and also left many dead and others displaced.
“There have been a series of attacks and counter-attacks recently, and innocent lives have been lost since the beginning of the year. We have started profiling all illegal gun holders so that we deal with them in accordance with the law. We already have some names,” Dr Hassan said in Maralal on Monday.
Samburu, along with neighbouring Baringo, Laikipia and Turkana counties, has long struggled with armed conflict fuelled by livestock theft and competition for scarce pasture.
To carry out the disarmament, the government will deploy security officers from the Anti-Stock Theft Unit (ASTU), Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU), General Service Unit (GSU) and military personnel.
However, past disarmament efforts in Samburu and other parts of the North Rift have faced challenges, including human rights violation claims and fears that unarmed communities will be vulnerable to rival groups.
Dr Hassan urged illegal gun holders to surrender their weapons voluntarily before the operation begins.
“We are giving locals in conflict zones where we believe there are illegal guns a chance to surrender them. The government is the sole authority in providing security,” he said.
In a decisive move to curb the rising incidence of highway banditry, the government has ordered that all vehicles using the Maralal-Baragoi road be given armed escorts. The road has become a hotspot for violent ambushes, forcing many travellers to seek longer and costlier alternative routes.
Armed gunmen have been targeting vehicles, paralysing trade and movement between Maralal and Baragoi, the county's two main economic centres.
Dr Hassan said the government would deploy additional security officers along the route to ensure safe passage for motorists and traders.
The poor condition of the road has exacerbated security concerns as vehicles are forced to travel at slow speeds, often making them easy targets. Bandits take advantage of the road's treacherous state to stage attacks, knowing that travellers have little room to escape.
Dr Hassan said that the government is committed to dismantling the bandit networks that facilitate these attacks and restoring law and order in the region.
Samburu West MP Naisula Lesuuda separately called for the reinstatement of the Special Operations Group (SOG), a military unit previously deployed to tackle high-risk security threats in Samburu North.
“We have been calling for the reinstatement of the specialised forces, which were instrumental in flushing out gunmen,” she said.
The recent spate of deadly attacks comes just four months after President William Ruto pledged to beef up security in the region -- a promise that included the possible redeployment of the elite SOG.
However, there has been no confirmed action on this front, leaving residents to wonder if lives could have been saved if the promise had been kept.
During the Maa Cultural Festival in Samburu last November, President Ruto assured locals that his government would prioritise the eradication of banditry in Samburu and parts of the North Rift.
Among his promises was to strengthen security through increased deployment of specialised forces, particularly the SOG, which has played a key role in fighting banditry in the past.
