Residents of Isiolo and Meru counties have expressed support for the security operation underway in neighbouring Samburu, standardmedia.co.ke reports. The backing from the two counties was reported on Sunday, September 27, 2026, as the operation continued.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen has defended the exercise and directed that caution be taken to avoid harming civilians, according to Citizen Digital. The Star reports that Murkomen has pledged to bring banditry in the country to an end. Ghafla.co.ke reports that the Interior CS ordered a decisive crackdown on illegal firearms in Samburu.
Separately, Capital FM Africa reports that more than 3,000 illegal guns and 8,000 rounds of ammunition have been recovered in the Kerio Valley, where Murkomen also issued a warning to bandits. That figure covers the Kerio Valley recoveries, not Samburu alone.
The statements and the reported recoveries point to a widening push against illegal weapons in Kenya's banditry-prone northern and Rift Valley areas. The support voiced in Isiolo and Meru matters because those counties border Samburu, where the operation is concentrated, and residents there have often borne the spillover of insecurity.
What to watch next is whether the operation widens beyond Samburu and whether the cautioned approach translates into fewer civilian casualties as the crackdown proceeds.
