April 5, 2015 12:20 AM CEST
Kenyan authorities have imposed a curfew in the
northeast part of that country a day after radical
Muslims slaughtered at least 147 Christian
university students.
The Muslim terror group Al-Shabab has claimed
responsibility for the horrific attack.
Now there's a $215,000 reward for a man
identified by Kenyan authorities as the mastermind behind the slaughter.
On Thursday morning, four gunmen strapped
with suicide vests and armed with AK-47s
stormed the Garissa University College in
northeast Kenya.
"It was around 5 a.m. We wake up early in the
morning for the morning prayers. We tried to
turn on the lights, but they were not working,"
one survivor recalled.
Eye witnesses say the terrorists went from room
to room asking students whether they were
Christian or Muslim. Those who identified
themselves as Christian were murdered on the
spot without mercy.
It appears the gunmen had extensive knowledge
of the campus layout, even targeting an area
often used by Christians for prayer.
Many of those killed were reportedly beheaded
after being asked to recite verses from the
Koran. The siege lasted 13 hours before police
finally stormed the university. The gunmen died
when they detonated their suicide vests.
"On my own behalf and on behalf of my
government, I extend condolences to the families
of those who have perished in this attack,"
Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta said.
Garissa is close to the Somali border. The town
is mainly Muslim but many Christians attend the
university.
The military has stepped up security as a dusk-
to-dawn curfew has been ordered in Garissa and
three nearby counties.
Since 2008, Kenya has been at war with Al-
Shabab. The group has launched several attacks
on Kenyan soil, but Thursday's was by far the
deadliest.
Kenyan authorities have imposed a curfew in the