Hundreds of Somali demonstrators staged a rally in front of the Kenyan embassy in London to condemn the recent deadly airstrikes by the Kenyan military in South-western Somalia that claimed the lives of dozens of civilians.
Demonstrators, holding anti-Kenya placards assembled at the embassy on Thursday to express their anger towards the airborne campaign by the Kenyan military in the Gedio region.
“We are here in front of the Kenyan Embassy to denounce the massacre of Kenyan military planes on our people in Somalia. They have killed innocent civilians for no reason and such campaign won’t bring any kind of solution,” said Habibo Yusuf, one of the protesters.
Some of the protesters chanted that Kenya should leave Somalia.
Dozens of Somali civilians lost their lives after Kenyan warplanes bombarded villages in Gedo region after al-Shabaab militants killed over 50 Kenyan soldiers in an army base attack in the area last month.
Hundreds of Civilians were also forced to leave their homes due to the bombardment.
Nairobi officials have denied of killing civilians, claiming that they pounded al-Shabaab hideouts. This was strongly denied by the local administration and elders in the region.
Somalia’s Federal government said that it will investigate the atrocities claimed by the Kenyan troops in the region.
Kenya sent forces into Somalia in 2011 to fight the al-Qaida-inspired Islamist group, which has carried out a series of bombings and kidnappings in the region.
