GARISSA, Kenya — Somalia’s Islamic extremist group al-Shabab warned Saturday of more attacks in Kenya like the assault on Garissa University College that killed 148 people.
“Kenyan cities will run red with blood,” said al-Shabab, according to the SITE intelligence monitoring group.
The Islamic militants said the attack on Garissa college was in retaliation for killings carried out by Kenyan troops fighting the rebels in Somalia.
“No amount of precaution or safety measures will be able to guarantee your safety, thwart another attack or prevent another bloodbath,” said al-Shabab.
Following the extremists’ threats, Ken yan President Uhuru Kenyatta vowed to take harsh measures against the Islamic militants.
“We will fight terrorism to the end,” Kenyatta said. “I guarantee that my administration shall respond in the fiercest way possible.”
A survivor of the killings at Garissa University College was found Saturday, two days after the attack.
Cynthia Cheroitich, 19, said from her hospital gurney that she hid in a wardrobe and covered herself with clothes, refusing to emerge even when some of her classmates came out of hiding when demanded by the gunmen. She was rescued shortly before 10 a.m., according to Kenyan officials.
“I was just praying to my God,” Cheroitich, a Christian, said of her ordeal.
Authorities displayed the bodies of the alleged attackers before about 2,000 people in a large open area in central Garissa. The bodies lay on the bed of a pickup truck that drove slowly past the crowd, which broke into a run in pursuit. Soldiers monitored the crowd. There was shouting and clouds of dust rose as the vehicle left the area.
Spectator Yusuf Mohamed applauded the display, saying authorities wanted to “win the hearts of the people” and clear any doubts that the attackers had been killed.
Kenyan authorities initially said the attackers had been strapped with explosives that went off like bombs when they were shot, but investigators later said there were no suicide vests. The four bodies shown Saturday were intact.
