Kenyan military action averted with return of stolen weapons

In a fresh indication of the increasing regionalisation of the conflict, Somali militiamen on Friday returned vehicles, equipment and weapons stolen from a Kenyan military camp in Amuma in Kenya's north-eastern province, an army spokesman told IRIN. Kenya had threatened to launch "robust military action" inside Somalia if the stolen items were not returned by Thursday. About 400 Somali militiamen - aboard eight armoured trucks - had on Tuesday attacked the Amuma base, disarmed some 23 Kenyan soldiers and stolen the military supplies before returning to Somalia, news agencies said. Kenya's military spokesman Nicholas Simani told IRIN on Friday that army personnel at Amuma had received the stolen items and that "tensions have eased" at the border. He said Omar Haji Mohamed 'Masale' of the SNF had apologised to the Kenyan government, terming the incursion an act by "junior officers who did not know border boundaries". Following the incident, Kenya had closed its border to prevent any Somali refugees from entering, local media reported. A UNHCR official told IRIN on Friday that the agency was talking to the Kenyan government to "keep the border open."