MOMBASA, Kenya
Kenya security authorities have arrested 106 suspects over possible links to Saturday night blasts in the port city of Mombasa, as President Uhuru Kenyatta vowed to step up the ongoing security operation.
"The 106 people arrested are suspects for now," Mombasa County Commissioner Nelson Marwa told Anadolu Agency on Sunday.
"We intend to interrogate and screen them to point out who are linked to the blasts in Mwembe Tayari and Reef Beach Hotel," he said.
Marwa said the suspects are being held at different police stations in Mombasa.
Unidentified men riding a motorbike had hurled a grenade at a Nairobi-bound bus, killing three passengers instantly and wounding thirteen others.
One of the injured later died in hospital.
No one was injured in the attack on Nyali Reef Beach, which is frequented by western tourists.
Commissioner Marwa confirmed to AA that 700 police officers have been deployed to the port city to intensify security.
Earlier on Sunday Mombasa city was in panic when police were called to inspect a suspicious unattended bag left on a street.
The incident attracted a large crowd as officers secured the area and safely opened the bag. No explosive was found inside.
-Unfazed-
In Nairobi, President Kenyatta condemned the Mombasa blasts and called for Kenyans to remain calm and vigilant.
"Since independence, Kenyans have enjoyed freedom of worship and religion," he said in a statement released on Sunday.
"The terrorists would like a war of religion[s], bringing to an end our history of tolerance," Kenyatta cautioned.
"This country will not allow it. The terrorists will be treated as the vicious criminals they are, and our tradition of easy coexistence will be maintained," he said.
"My government's pursuit of extremists and their agents will continue; under law, it will be intensified. Those who chose to murder innocents will be defeated," added Kenyatta.
He praised the country's security agencies.
"Let me commend the security agencies for their persistence. They have already thwarted a number of attempted attacks," said Kenyatta.
"They will receive the further support that they need to keep us safe," he pledged.
The Mombasa blasts were the latest in a series of attacks this year.
On March 23, gunmen stormed a church in Likoni near Mombasa, killing two people on the spot while four others later succumbed to injuries in hospital.
A week later, six people were killed and dozens others seriously injured in blasts in Nairobi's Eastleigh district.
On April 23, two policemen were killed as they escorted a vehicle that had been intercepted at a roadblock to Pangani Police Station in Nairobi.
Kenyan authorities blame the attacks on the Somali militant group Al-Shabaab which demands that the East African country withdraw its troops from Somalia.
By Yassin Juma
englishnews@aa.com.tr
