Reports indicate that an abandoned grenade exploded in Daba, Mandera county of Kenya, crippling two teenage boys.
The boys threw a stone at the explosive, which caused it to explode. This is the most recent incident brought by discarded explosives.
Mohammed Adan Ibrahim, 13, and Fardosa Ibrahim Kula, 14, were admitted to Elwak Subcounty Medical with multiple injuries that resulted in the amputation of their legs, according to police and hospital officials.
The teenagers claimed to have seen the object, later identified as a grenade, while herding sheep over the weekend.
“Out of curiosity, one of the boys picked a stone and hit the device, then it exploded,” the boy said.
The victim informed the authorities that he was intrigued by the green object. Before being rescued and sent to the hospital, the explosion caused the lads to suffer serious injuries.
Police were informed by witnesses that the youths detonated the bomb without realising the risks involved.
The police claimed that after being called to the hospital, they went to the scene and collected the samples for analysis.
Security operatives issued a warning that further bombs might be present in the region and attributed this to the nearby al Shabaab terrorist organisation.
Two boys were killed in a related event that happened last month when they attempted to carry a rocket-propelled grenade that had been placed on a field nearby.
Early in October, a group of kids in Golicha, Elwak subcounty, who had picked up a similar RPG from a field had narrowly avoided death.
When the children stumbled upon the bomb while herding animals, they picked it up and carried it to the chief’s office.
The knowledge that the children had of the object’s danger astounded the authorities. Later, the explosive was taken by the police for secure detonation.
An abandoned explosive device had earlier exploded on three children in the same location, injuring them. One of the kids hit the device, which has since been determined to be a grenade, as they were playing nearby. According to the police, the majority of the bombs are left behind by roving Somali terrorist suspects.
Northeastern police boss George Seda said they are aware some of the explosives have been abandoned by terrorists to cause harm to residents.
“We urge all concerned parties to be careful, especially in areas near the border, where these explosives could be abandoned,” he said.
Seda added that they have sent out professionals to search the region for further devices. The authorities, according to him, would also inform the locals about the artifacts. The region is close to the major Kenya-Somalia border, which is frequently crossed by terrorists from al Shabaab who attack at random.
Sometimes, terrorists have destroyed security installations that they had targeted. They occasionally hurl explosives, but they don’t go off.
Repeated attacks by terrorists, who occasionally receive assistance from locals, have primarily targeted the border region.
On occasion, terrorists assault security agencies by planting bombs along their routes. Since Siad Barre’s overthrow in 1991, Somalia hasn’t had a stable government.