No fewer than 13 persons were killed and others severely injured after an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) went off in northeast Kenya, near the nation’s border with Somalia.

The IED was triggered by an unsuspecting bus plying the route to Mandera. The bus locally called a matatu, carrying about 14 passengers drove over the roadside bomb, triggering it to detonate.

According to the Nation Media Group based in Kenya, police commander of the region, Bunei Rono, had apprehended one suspect linked to the crime.

Mr Rono said the suspect was undergoing interrogation to shed more light on the unfortunate incident.

Abdi Dube, a survivor who spoke to the publication, said passengers heard gunshots few minutes before the bomb detonated.

“On Monday January 31, 2022, around seven in the morning a civilian vehicle plying Mandera-Arabia road was attacked with an IED. It happened approximately 8kms from Mandera town.

“The attackers numbering around six then reinforced the IED attack with AK47 rifles. A GSU patrol team which was on foot and close to the area responded immediately,” a police report read.

Although no terrorist sect had claimed credit for the bombing, all fingers point to Islamic extremists Al-Shabaab, an affiliate terrorist organisation to the deadly Al-Qaeda.

Al-Shabaab has been behind most of the attacks unleashed in the north-eastern part of Kenya. The sect is known for attacking public transportation near the Somali border.

A similar incident occurred on the same road in 2017 when the convoy of Mandera’s governor Ali Roba got blown to pieces, killing five security officers and leaving several injured.

Mr Roba in a Facebook post at the time wrote “Unfortunately I lost five of my security officers including my personal bodyguard in an attack on my convoy.”