Panic and terror engulfed Kwa Kamari Trading Centre in Tseikuru, Mwingi North on Saturdayafternoon, after heavily armed bandits staged a brazen daytime raid, killing seven people and leaving a trail of destruction in one of the deadliest attacks to hit the region in recent months.
The attackers, estimated to be about 40, reportedly arrived in a Toyota Probox at around 2pm on Saturday before descending on the remote trading centre armed with automatic rifles and machetes.
What followed was a massacre.
Victims were gunned down and hacked in broad daylight as terrified residents fled for safety. Some hid in nearby bushes as gunfire rang out, fearing the attackers could return.
Tseikuru Deputy County Commissioner Ann Mwangi said the seven victims suffered gunshot wounds and deep machete cuts. Their bodies were moved to Kyuso Level Four Hospital mortuary.
One survivor who sustained gunshot injuries was rushed to Tseikuru Level Four Hospital and remains in critical condition.
The attackers also torched a petrol station and set a motorcycle ablaze before fleeing, leaving behind smoke, fear and grief.
Security officials suspect the raid may be linked to escalating retaliatory violence between pastoralist and farming communities following earlier clashes inside Mwingi North Game Reserve involving armed camel herders.
“It is retaliation after a Somali herder killed a Kamba herder in the game park. In response, Kamba residents killed some Somalis. This appears to be a counterattack,” said DCC Mwangi.
The killings have once again exposed the fragile security situation in the volatile Tseikuru belt, where residents have repeatedly complained of armed incursions, livestock conflicts and deadly raids.
Kasalu Demands Action
As shockwaves spread across Kitui County, Woman Representative Dr Irene Kasalu condemned the killings and faulted the government over what she termed repeated failure to protect residents.
“The people of Kitui are not expendable,” she said in a hard-hitting statement directed at President William Ruto and Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen.
Kasalu questioned how armed herders continue to possess illegal firearms and accused authorities of ignoring repeated warnings over insecurity in Tseikuru.
“We are tired of the silence and excuses while our people are slaughtered in their own homes,” she said.
The lawmaker demanded an immediate and aggressive security intervention to neutralize bandits operating in the region.
Her remarks are expected to heighten pressure on the national government as anger grows over recurring attacks in Mwingi North.
For residents of Kwa Kamari, however, the night fell with fear — and the haunting question of whether the killers could strike again.
