Turkana ambush: Ethiopia grants Kenya access to the scene of attack

Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen when he visited Todonyang on February 24, 2025, following an attack by suspected Ethiopian militia

Officials have accessed the area of an attack incident in Todonyang along the Kenya-Ethiopia border to search for missing Kenyans, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has said.

The CS said the access was allowed following diplomatic discussions in Nairobi between Kenyan and Ethiopian officials on Tuesday.

He said Ethiopia has allowed full access to the Kenyan team to search for the missing persons on their side.

“Today, the team from the Kenyan side, working with their Ethiopian counterparts, accessed the area of the incident and are currently searching for the missing persons and 15 boats,” Murkomen said in a statement.

He assured that the government is doing everything possible to account for all missing persons while at the same time engaging with the Ethiopian government to restore normalcy in the area.

“We stand in solidarity with the families whose loved ones are unaccounted for and appeal for calm. We will give another update on the progress of the search and rescue efforts in due course,” he said.

On February 22, 2025, a group of Kenyan fishermen were on a routine fishing mission in Lake Turkana when they came under attack from suspected Dassanech militia from Ethiopia.

Murkomen noted that due to poor communication on the Ethiopian side, information of the attack started reaching the Kenyan authorities late at night.

He further noted that frantic efforts were made immediately by the local security agencies in Turkana County to establish the magnitude of the attack.

He said a reporting desk was established at the Todonyang GSU camp for residents to report missing persons.

Murkomen visited the area on Monday to assess the state of affairs in the company of East African Community Affairs and Regional Development CS Beatrice Askul, Turkana Senator James Lomenen, Turkana North MP Ekwom Nabuin, the DIG NPS Eliud Lagat, Rift Valley Regional Commissioner Dr Abdi Hassan, GSU commandant Ranson Lolmodooni and Turkana County Commissioner Julius Kavita, among other leaders and security officials.

Unconfirmed reports said a number of people were killed.

It is reported that heavily armed Dassanech militia ambushed and indiscriminately sprayed bullets at Turkana fishermen fishing in Lake Turkana near River Omo.

Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo said the attack happened near the border on Ethiopia’s side.