Somalia has 'no info' about Kenya's wall

Somalia's ambassador in Kenya, Mohamed Ali Ameriko, said "We have no information on the matter"

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

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Somalia's ambassador in Kenya, Mohamed Ali Ameriko, said Wednesday that he had "no information" regarding Kenya's plan to build a security wall along its border with Somalia.

"Kenyan authorities have not officially notified the Somali side on the matter," he added.

Ameriko said Kenya had the right to build whatever walls it wanted, provided they were erected on Kenyan territory.

The Somali diplomat added that construction of a wall on the border with another country required that country's consent.

Ameriko described his country's relations with Kenya as "strong," noting that the two countries had the shared goal of fighting terrorism.

Kenya said Tuesday that it would begin construction of a stone wall on part of its border with neighboring Somalia to prevent possible attacks by the Al-Shabaab group.

"The decision to build the wall comes after consultations with the local Mandera government following calls by residents to improve border security," Kenyan Internal Security Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery told on Tuesday.

"We will begin this week," he said.

The 200km wall will be built at the Mandera border point, separating it from the Somali town of Bula Hawo.

Bula Hawo is less than 1km from Mandera, which has been the hardest-hit by attacks blamed on Al-Shabaab, whose training camps are reportedly less than 70km from Mandera.

The local government has put the number of those killed over the last month at 90.

"Insecurity in Mandera is a result of the unregulated entry of people from Bula Hawo," Nkaissery asserted. "The wall will regulate the flow of people from Bula Hawo."

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