Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) has been indicted of killing 40 civilians in Somalia over the last 22 months that ended in October.
In a damning report by the United Nations issued on Sunday, reports Daily Nation, it cites that airstrikes by KDF purportedly caused the deaths of 36 people while another six sustained injuries.
The UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (Unsom) and the UN Human Rights Office jointly compiled the report.
They blamed the deaths of the 36 civilians of Somali origin on KDF units which are not in any way linked to the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom).
The report further accused KDF affiliated to Amisom of killing four civilians and left five others injured.
Unsom Chief Michael Keating termed the incident as “shameful” as the parties involved failed to cushion civilians from the tragedy.
“Ultimately, civilians are paying the price for failure to resolve Somalia’s conflicts through political means. And parties to the conflict are simply not doing enough to shield civilians from the violence. This is shameful,” he said as further quoted by Daily Nation.
Though the number of civilian deaths reported in Somalia is high, Al shabaab has been hugely blamed for civilian deaths in the country.
About 1,223 civilians have been killed by the insurgents while nearly 1,500 others have been injured.
In response to accusations leveled on KDF by the UN, Kenyan Embassy in Mogadishu-Somalia’s capital disputed these claims and denied responsibility.
The Embassy particularly dismissed allegations that there are KDF units operating in Somalia without being affiliated to Amisom.
“For a UN report to insinuate that Kenya has an occupational force in Somalia is not only incorrect but very unfortunate — hence, need for this part of the report to be deleted forthwith,” read part of a statement signed by Kenya’s Ambassador to Somalia Lucas Tumbo.
“The serious allegation against KDF is not justified beyond doubt and therefore should not be retained in this report.”