Pregnant woman among 10 killed in blasts

A police officer inspects a matatu involved in an explosion at Nairobi’s Gikomba Market Friday

By JAMES MBAKA 

Nairobi, Kenya: A pregnant woman was among at least 10 people who died as more than 70 others were injured in twin bomb attacks at Nairobi’s busy Gikomba Market.

The attack happened in the middle of the crowded market at around 2.30pm, the busiest time of day when shoppers swarm the bazaar situated just outside Nairobi’s CBD.

One improvised explosive device (IED) was hurled at a 14-seater matatu, while the other appeared to have been left among items for sale in an open area, according to police.

The scenes of the two attacks were about 100m apart, which indicated a well-co-ordinated operation by suspected Al-Shabaab operatives.

The attacks came minutes before President Uhuru Kenyatta addressed the nation from State House, Nairobi, where he expressed the Government’s resolve to defeat terrorism.

In his speech, Uhuru consoled those injured.

No one had claimed responsibility for the attacks by the time of filing this story.

The injured were rushed to Kenyatta National Hospital with wounds of varying degrees of seriousness. Hospital spokesman Simon Ithae said the facility received eight bodies.

Police initially said three people had died, basing the death toll on the number of bodies found at the scene at the time. Most of the injured needed blood.

“We need blood now,” said Ithae. “We appeal to Kenyans to come and help.”

The terrorist attack brought business to a standstill as police cordoned off the area as traders watched from a distance.

Witnesses said they heard two explosions almost simultaneously. One witness, who gave his name only as James, said he saw the body of a pregnant woman under a car.

STANDSTILL

“Her body was thrust under the car that was right behind her stall,” he said.

The attacks happened barely two weeks after twin attacks on buses plying routes on the Thika Super Highway in which four people died. IEDs had been planted in both buses.

Nairobi police boss Benson Kibue said two suspects were arrested at the scene as they tried to escape after the devices detonated. One was injured and taken to KNH, where he remained under police watch.

Another one was confined at the nearby Kamukunji Police Station but was later whisked away by anti-terror police for questioning.

“We have two suspects in custody who will provide crucial information to help us get to the bottom of this cowardly and desperate act of terrorism,” Kibue said at the scene of the attack opposite Pefa Church, nearly 300m from Equity Bank’s Gikomba branch.

The hospital said that of the total number of casualties,  43 were male and 33 female. Seven  of the casualties were transferred to other hospitals to de-congest the facility.

Two were transferred to Nairobi Hospital, four to Aga Khan and one to Mater. Many of those brought to the hospital were bleeding profusely.

Soon after the explosions, youths ganged up and tried to march to Eastleigh Estate to carry out a retaliatory attack.

However, they were pushed back by a squad of General Service Unit officers.

Rescue operations at the scene were greatly hampered by the dense population and the crowd that milled around the area after the afternoon explosions.

Members of the public at one point engaged the police in a scuffle, allegedly after a suspect who had been arrested by wananchi and handed over to the police managed to slip through and escape. There was a security scare when police shot in the air to disperse the angry onlookers who accused police of responding slowly.

But Kibue said officers responded swiftly and managed to secure the scene of the crime for investigations

“Our response was swift but I want to urge members of the public to leave police to carry out their work without interference whenever there is a crime to enable faster response and saving of lives,” Kibue said.

Witnesses alleged that four men threw an object at a matatu that was dropping and picking passengers before the explosion.

The men tried to escape but members of the public managed to corner two of them who were saved from lynching when the police arrived.

Additional reporting by Cyrus Ombati and Winsley Masese