Kenya will reopen its border with Somalia in April after a 15-year closure imposed over repeated terrorist attacks, President William Ruto said Thursday, signaling a step toward restoring cross-border movement and regional cooperation.
The frontier was officially closed in October 2011 because of attacks on Kenyan soil by the al-Shabab terrorist group, which has been waging an insurgency against the central government in Mogadishu for more than 15 years.
"It is unacceptable that fellow Kenyans in Mandera remain cut off from their kin and neighbours in Somalia due to the prolonged closure of the Mandera Border Post," Ruto said, adding: "We will reopen the border post in April."
In May 2023, the two nations agreed to a phased reopening of their common border. But two months later, Kenya reversed the decision following the killing of five civilians and eight police officers near the frontier in attacks blamed on Al-Shabaab.
A year earlier, similar reopening plans were announced during talks between then Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta and his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, but they never materialized.
Kenya is a major contributor of troops to the African Union military operation against the al-Qaida-affiliated terrorists.
Kenya and Somalia share a 680-kilometre (420-mile) land border and have been locked in a dispute for years over a potentially oil- and gas-rich chunk of the Indian Ocean.
In October 2021, the U.N.'s top court handed control of most of the area to Somalia, but Kenya rejected the ruling.
Ruto, who was speaking in Mandera Town during his Northeastern tour, said the intention to re-open two crossings follows years of security assessments, adding that there will be a heavy deployment of security forces to ensure the move does not compromise safety.
He hoped that the re-opening would boost "cross-border trade for the mutual prosperity of our people".
In a speech, he asked all residents of Mandera, which has been targeted several times, to "join in the battle against al-Shabab. These al-Shabab are useless, I want to assure that Kenya will work together with you, just help us combat these criminals and terrorists."
