Landmine blast injures 7 in Kenya

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - A landmine explosion which hit a vehicle in the Kenyan town of Garissa on Monday late afternoon injured seven people -- six critically -- the Kenya Red Cross has confirmed.

In a statement, the Kenya Red Cross said the injured had been rushed to Liboi Health Center just after the explosion.

Security forces failed to respond to Anadolu Agency requests for comment.

It is not the first time that such attacks have happened in Kenya. In June last year an ambulance driver was killed in Garissa county and medics were wounded after they drove over a landmine which security forces say had been planted by militants from the Somalia-based al-Qaeda affiliate al-Shabaab.

There have also been numerous cases of police deaths in Kenya -- particularly in Garissa county -- after unsuspecting officers drove over devices believed to have been placed by al-Shabaab militants.

Garissa county has witnessed numerous attacks by al-Shabaab, who cross into Kenya through the porous Kenya-Somali border.

In April 2015 al-Shabaab gunmen killed more than 140 students from Garissa University, making the attack their bloodiest to date.