Kenya's military said Sunday that they shot dead six assailants attempting to forcefully enter a Navy camp in the coastal city of Mombasa.
Kenya Defense Forces spokesman David Obonyo said about 15 machete-wielding attackers engaged in the pre-dawn assault at the heavily-guarded 17 Kenya Rifles barracks in the Nyali area.
"An unknown attacker armed with a machete had first approached the sentry, and before the soldier could interrogate him, other attackers emerged from the nearby forest prompting the soldiers to open fire," Obonyo told Xinhua by phone.
The soldiers on duty shot dead five attackers on the spot and killed another during the pursuit after the rest of the gang fled into the forest, he said, adding that one soldier was wounded.
Meanwhile, Obonyo said one assailant was arrested and being interrogated, and the motive behind the attack was yet to be determined.
Following the incident, Mombasa security chiefs rushed to the scene and held a meeting at the barracks for hours.
According to the spokesman, the armed assailants had head gears on them and seemed to be members of a criminal gang. It was not clear whether the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), a group blamed for sporadic attacks in the coastal city, was responsible.
In the past days the government has been claiming that the MRC is regrouping and planning attacks. The police said they believe the group has been secretly recruiting new members.