20101203
africanews

An explosive device hurled into a police van in Kenya killed one officer in what a police commander said appeared to be a terrorist attack.

The attack took place in Eastleigh, a mainly Somali part of Nairobi during the morning rush hour. Witnesses said three men lay in wait for the white police Land Rover and tossed the device inside before running into an alley.

"This is a clear indication that terrorism is very, very real, globally and in our country. There are definitely a number of elements who are bent to cause terror in Kenya," said Kinuthia Mbugua, Kenya's administrative police commander.

Analysts said the attack could also have been carried out to settle a grudge against the Kenyan authorities who routinely raid the suburb to weed out illegal Somali immigrants.

Kenyan police say Eastleigh -- dubbed "Little Mogadishu" by residents -- is awash with small arms. Residents say it is a hub for money laundering and people trafficking, while Somali rebels visit for treatment of wounds and to recruit fighters.

Foreign investors in Kenya, east Africa's largest economy which shares a porous border with Somalia, cite the Islamist insurgency next door as a serious concern.
Police said the explosive device could have been a grenade.

"A casual look at the scene shows the explosion hit the passenger seat where the police officer who died was," Mbugua told reporters.

"From the debris that we have seen, it is definitely within the grenade class, but let us conduct further investigations."

The second officer was released from hospital after being treated for minor bruises. He blamed the Somali insurgent group al Shabaab and said he was lucky to be alive.
"I went to work as usual ... a grenade was thrown at our car, it must be al Shabaab not anyone else," the officer, who declined to be named, told Reuters.

TV pictures showed the Land Rover with its front passenger seat ripped off, and the windscreen and roof damaged by the blast. A bloodied shoe lay in the vehicle's front cabin, where witnesses said the two officers were seated.