Al-Shabaab in Kenya

This item appears on page 19 of the January 2016 issue.

The US Department of State warns of the risk of traveling to Kenya. Those considering traveling there should be aware of recently heightened threats of terrorism and of the high rate of violent crime in some areas. 

Attacks by grenades and improvised explosive devices have occurred throughout Kenya. In 2014 and 2015, the Mombasa area had at least eight such attacks. The US government continues to receive information about potential terrorist threats from al-Qaeda and its affiliate al-Shabaab aimed at Western and Kenyan interests in Kenya, including within the Nairobi area.