East African Standard (in English) — 10 Aug. 1996, p. 1

Nairobi — Two Kenya army officers are feared dead after they were caught in a crossfire by Ethiopian regular army who invaded war-torn Somalia.

The dawn raid ended in the taking of three towns of Doloow, Beled Hawo, and Luuq in Gedo region of southwest Somalia.

According to Kenyan military sources, a number of Somali civilians were reported dead while several others injured by heavily armed Ethiopian forces known as Tigrays.

Mandera town and the surrounding villages were engulfed in tension and the air filled with sounds of bomb explosions as business came to a standstill.

Reliable sources further disclosed that the Kenya army was on the alert closely monitoring the raid. Thousands of Somalis fled to the Kenyan side of the border to take refuge as the three hour gunfire and bombardment continued.

A contingent of military personnel flew from Nairobi to the site and the injured soldiers are understood to have been airlifted to the Forces Memorial Hospital, Nairobi. Mandera District Commissioner Cosmas Mutai had left for the border where a large influx of people were reportedly crossing from Somalia.

Business at the town was also halted temporarily as the local traders closed for fear of attack.

According to impeccable sources in Mandera, a bomb exploded injuring an army officer manning the border post.

The explosion came after more than three hours of gunfire between the Tigrays and a group of Somali militiamen who were defending the towns.

The number of innocent civilians either killed or wounded during the raid could not be immediately established.