November 28, 2015•Update: December 05, 2015
By Andrew Ross
NAIROBI, Kenya
Kenyan police on Saturday said that they foiled a major attack in the capital Nairobi after arresting two suspects accused of belonging to a terror group.
Addressing the media on Saturday, Police Inspector General Joseph Boinett said that they had arrested Abubakar Sadiq (69) and Yassin Juma (25), accused of plotting attacks on Kenyan schools and foreigners in the country.
Boinett said that the two had given police information of whom and where they were targeting.
“These two individuals have made a number of trips to Iran; there are handlers there and they have been given targets and money and directed on the targets to case future attacks,” Boinett told reporters.
“We are aware that the two traveled to Iran last month where they met their handler and were given precise targets, with most of them being Kenyan schools,” he added.
Boinett described Sadiq as a well-respected senior figure in the Nairobi-based Shia community, claiming that Abubakar had admitted to radicalizing youth in the Kenyan capital.
Boinett added that the two were being investigated in secret by police; he described Juma as a student who had been radicalized by Abubakar.
Boinett thanked the local Shia Muslim community for aiding investigations which led to the arrest of the pair.
“We appeal to the Kenyan people to remain watchful and to continue cooperating with us as we work to defend and protect our country,” he said.
He said that UN diplomatic car plates had been stolen earlier this week and might be used to commit a terror attack.
On Nov. 20, gunmen using stolen diplomatic vehicle plates attacked a hotel in Mali’s capital.
