Silverio Omari
At least two people, including a police officer, were shot and killed on Friday in a clash over a gold mining site in Hilo, Moyale, Marsabit County.
The attackers stole a G3 rifle loaded with 20 bullets from the slain officer.
The site is among those closed over safety issues, but illegal miners continue to invade it for a living.
Police reported that several people, including police officers and the invaders, were injured in the Friday, July 19 incident.
The deceased were identified as Constable George Mukoma of the Border Patrol Unit, assigned to Hilo to combat gangs, and a civilian named Hassan Harrow Odono. Both were shot in the clash.
Police from the Hilo operation camp said that around 1 a.m. on Friday, a large group of about 3,000 people forcefully entered the Hilo Walikiti gold mining site and started pelting stones at the security officers guarding the site.
The police managed to repel the attackers.
Two hours later, the group returned with assorted crude weapons and attacked the police officers again. The officers regrouped and managed to repel them once more.
For the third time, the group returned around 8 a.m., now armed with guns and crude weapons, and started shooting and pelting stones at the police officers.
This prompted the police to fire back, killing one of the attackers.
The group attacked from all directions, overrunning the station. It was during this assault that Mukoma was killed, and his gun was stolen.
One officer was seriously injured and rushed to the hospital.
The bodies were moved to the mortuary, and police launched an investigation into the attack.
A major operation was planned in the area to recover the stolen weapon and apprehend the attackers.
The site has been a scene of drama between state agencies and miners seeking gold deposits.
The Hilo Gold Mine, near the Kenya-Ethiopia border in Dabel, has been a focal point for gold mining activities, attracting numerous youths seeking to earn a living through gold scavenging. However, due to safety and security concerns, the government ordered the mine’s closure on March 14, 2024.
Despite the closure, some miners continued their operations illegally, leading to this unfortunate incident.
The Hilo mining field is the same one closed by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki in March this year after deadly clashes between communities over mining rights, which left at least seven people dead.
Kindiki visited the area in March and ordered the closure of gold mining sites in Marsabit.
Kindiki flew to the Dabel Artisanal Mining Sites within Golbo Division of Marsabit County and announced measures to curb the escalation of violence and other criminal activities in the area.
The area had been rife with armed criminals facilitating the trade of narcotic drugs, while seven people, including two foreigners, were killed this week in gang rivalries among the illegal artisanal miners on site.
Cases of rape, defilement, and gender-based violence have also been reported, according to Kindiki.
A special team from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has taken over investigations to identify and apprehend the offenders.
Most of the gold mines have been found to be unsafe, causing dozens of deaths.
Kindiki’s directive, which also banned unlicensed commercial mining, came just a week after two people died following another collapse.
“To ensure regularized artisanal mining that meets public safety and environmental standards, the government has banned all artisanal mining activities as well as unlicensed commercial mining,” he said.
The area is rich in gold deposits and attracts residents who venture there to make a living.
Similar incidents have been reported in other parts of the country, including Lirhembe village, Ikolomani in Kakamega County, and Manyatta village, Vihiga County.
Miners have risked their lives in search of gold, especially in Pokot.
In Pokot, the most affected areas are around River Sukut between Tangasia and Kapsangar locations, where young boys drop out of school to mine.
Some accidents have been attributed to the unsafe use of heavy machines to crush stones in artisanal activities, overlooking the environmental impact.
The machinery weakens the sites, making them unsafe for miners, according to officials.
To address these challenges, the government has directed a halt to mining activities until the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) can conduct an environmental impact assessment and provide ecological guidelines before mining can resume.
NEMA officials were directed to carry out the assessment and report on the sites as part of efforts to improve safety measures.
Gold miners are also required to seek licenses from all relevant government authorities before commencing work and to stop using heavy machinery at the sites.
The majority of gold mining activities are carried out by small and medium enterprise miners exposed to unsafe practices in the extraction process.
Those engaged in mining have often defied government bans, especially during rainy seasons, arguing that it is the only activity that enables them to put food on the table.
Dj Vnyash
