Obama condemns Garissa attacks
By Nation Reporters
Posted Monday, July 2 2012 at 09:18
In a statement released Monday by the White House press secretary, the US called for speedy justice on the perpetrators of the recent spate of terror attacks along Kenya's coastal and the North East regions.
"The attacks on two churches in Garissa follow shortly after the killing of one aid worker and the kidnapping of four others in Dadaab refugee camp this week, as well as an attack on a nightclub in Mombasa last weekend.
"The perpetrators of these attacks have shown no respect for human life and dignity, and must be brought to justice for these heinous acts," the statement from White House said.
The statement came moments after a section of Muslims youths in Nairobi reacted angrily to the blasts in Garissa and said the incident was a blot in their image.
Those interviewed by Nation said they are slowly being treated with disdain by fellow Kenyans.
“Wherever you go, people look at you suspiciously. The perception that muslim youths are al shabaab is a bad tag and it threatens our search for livelihood,” said Jamal Mohamed, 23.
Mohamed Osman, an IT student in Nairobi, said the fact that the attacks target innocent people is bad enough.
“Why kill innocent people. People who are worshipping? I do not know what one would ever gain from that, both on earth and in heaven,” said Osman,26.
Other youths lamented that by taking the religious angle, the attacks were likely to cause tension between Muslims and Christians.
“We assure Christians that we should not be divided on religious lines. Someone is out to create a big wedge between us with a very ill motive,” said Yusuf Mohamed, 22.
Yusuf casted aspersion at the coordinated manner in which the attacks seemed to have occurred.
“The other day, someone said there will be an attack in Mombasa. It happened. It means some people are aware of these attacks in advance,” he said.
Although Saadaq Farah, 25, feels safe in Nairobi, he was worried someone was keen to set fellow Kenyans against each other.
"Every time a blast occurs, we (Muslim youths) experience a problem interacting with other Kenyans. We know nothing about these criminals,” he said.
