NAIROBI, Kenya

Seven people, including National Police Service reservists, were killed Saturday in coordinated cattle-rustling attacks that hit multiple villages in upper eastern Kenya, authorities said.

The area lies roughly 270 kilometers (168 miles) northeast of Nairobi, across the Meru–Isiolo border region, where communities in both counties live in close proximity and often share grazing corridors.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Meru County Commissioner Jacob Ouma said armed raiders launched near-simultaneous assaults on several settlements, killing civilians and reservists who tried to repel them.

A number of residents were also injured, and more than 600 livestock were driven away during the attacks.

Meru County Peace and Herders Chairman Charles Kamwibua also confirmed the deaths, saying two of the seven victims were killed while trying to retrieve their stolen livestock during the early morning raids.

Police officers and local security teams were deployed to pursue the attackers, while additional reinforcements were sent to secure vulnerable villages along the Meru–Isiolo frontier.

Security officials said the scale and timing of the raids suggest a well-planned operation involving armed groups familiar with the terrain.

Cattle rustling has long plagued northern and upper eastern Kenya, where communities compete for pasture and water and criminal networks exploit porous borders to move stolen animals.

The Meru–Isiolo corridor has seen repeated cycles of revenge attacks, livestock theft, and clashes between rival groups, prompting periodic security operations to curb the violence.