TURKANA ATTACK: How Poor Communication From Ethiopia Hindered Rescue Mission
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen acknowledged on Wednesday, February 26, that Ethiopian authorities’ poor communication severely hampered any potential rescue attempt on the night of a fatal militia attack that killed over 20 Lake Turkana fishermen.
“Due to poor communication on the Ethiopian side, information of the attack started reaching the Kenyan authorities late at night,” Murkomen stated
UPDATE ON THE SEARCH OF MISSING KENYAN CITIZENS FOLLOWING CROSS-BORDER ATTACK IN TODONYANG ALONG THE KENYA-ETHIOPIA BORDER pic.twitter.com/4wwlxaP830
— KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN, E.G.H (@kipmurkomen) February 26, 2025
His comments came after the fisherman were killed at the Todonyang border post on Lake Turkana on Saturday evening, February 22, when suspected Ethiopian militants ambushed them and opened fire indiscriminately.
According to reports, heavily armed Dassanech militia assaulted the area while fishermen were on Lake Turkana.
The attack gravely injured several others, and there are fears that the death toll will climb.
FURTHER UPDATE ON THE SEARCH OF MISSING KENYAN CITIZENS FOLLOWING CROSS-BORDER ATTACK IN TODONYANG ALONG THE KENYA-ETHIOPIA BORDER pic.twitter.com/75CILjWuyr
— KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN, E.G.H (@kipmurkomen) February 26, 2025
As a result, the CS told the public that a search and rescue mission had begun after getting full access to Ethiopia following the horrific militia attack.
Murkomen revealed that diplomatic talks between Kenya and Ethiopia in Nairobi were successful, allowing a security force to perform their operation four days after the attack.
“On Tuesday, February 25, diplomatic discussions in Nairobi between Kenyan and Ethiopian officials bore fruit late in the evening allowing full access to the Kenyan team to search for the missing persons on the Ethiopian side,” Murkomen stated.
“Today, the team from the Kenyan side, working with their Ethiopian counterparts, accessed the area of the incident and are currently searching for the missing persons and the 15 boats,” he added.
Turkana County Commissioner, Mr. Julius Kavita, together with Turkana elected leaders, held a meeting today in Todonyang to discuss the ongoing security operation along the Kenya-Ethiopia border. The government is still searching for the bodies of fishermen who were killed by… pic.twitter.com/xYOe2S9lIk
— The Standard Digital (@StandardKenya) February 25, 2025
According to other allegations from local authorities, the attack may have been a retaliation for a previous incident in which a well-known bandit shot and killed three Dassanech fishermen in Turkana on Saturday morning.
Aside from the slain fisherman, reports claimed that other fishermen were still unaccounted for, prompting the search and rescue operation.
Following the attack, Murkomen declared that plans were underway to arm police reservists as the government devised both long-term and short-term methods to reduce instability in the border region.
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“National Police Reservists, who play a critical role in complementing regular security agencies, will now be better equipped and incentivised to deal with militias and other criminal gangs,” Murkomen stated.
Police Probe Todonyang Killings
— NTV Kenya (@ntvkenya) February 23, 2025
Tension remains high at Todonyang, Turkana North on the border of Kenya and Ethiopia following the indiscriminate killing of Kenyan fishermen by heavily armed militia from Ethiopia.#NTVWeekendEdition @RuthSarmwei pic.twitter.com/0phPqPubcA
Police reservists in the country have previously expressed worries over their welfare.
Some of their issues stem from a lack of proper compensation, as they are officially volunteers supporting regular police personnel.
A day after the attack, the National Police Service (NPS) issued a harsh warning to Turkana’s local communities against engaging in retaliation attacks.
TURKANA ATTACK: How Poor Communication From Ethiopia Hindered Rescue Mission
