By Duncan Miriri
Friday September 22, 2023
[3/7] Members of the Kenya police band use escalators inside the Westgate shopping mall, on the 10th commemoration since the Somali militant group al Shabaab attacked the mall killing at least 67 people, in Nairobi, Kenya September 21, 2023. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi
Kenya pledged on Thursday to reinforce security measures against Somali militants as it commemorated a deadly mall attack which security analysts say led to improvements in the country's readiness to counter threats.
A decade after 67 people were killed during an attack by gunmen from Somalia's al Shabaab group at the upscale Westgate Mall in Nairobi and a subsequent four-day siege by security forces, militants from the group are still launching sporadic attacks on Kenyan soil.
"Our end goal is to sustain the highest level of surveillance along our borders and covert/overt security operations across the country, and neutralise the enemy before he strikes," Raymond Omollo, a senior interior ministry official, said in a statement marking the anniversary.
Government officials laid white and red roses outside the main entrance to the mall, where affluent Kenyans and expatriates can find the latest fashion, electronics and fine dining.
Among those attending the ceremony was survivor Richard Maige, a gardener at the mall, who dived into a culvert at the first sound of gunshots before using his knowledge of the facility to escape to safety.
"It is only God who saved me from the attack. A lot of my colleagues who were here died or were injured," he said.
The attack was in retaliation for Kenya sending its troops into Somalia in 2011 to battle al Shabaab militants.