This archive report was first published on 9 July 2019.
On Tuesday, January 15, 2019, a terror attack occurred at the DusitD2 hotel in Nairobi's Riverside area. The attack led to an emergency National Security Advisory Committee (NSAC) meeting at Harambee House, where it was decided to send General Service Unit Commandant Douglas Kanja to the scene to oversee the operation.
Kanja was ordered to mobilize special forces from the Recce Squad and take charge of the scene. Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet and his deputy for Administration Police, Noor Gabow, were instructed to stay in their offices and update the media on the progress, while Njoroge Mbugua, the deputy, and George Kinoti, the Director of Criminal Investigations, were told to join Kanja at DusitD2.
After hours of evacuating hostages and calculating, the Special Forces reached out to their superiors by dawn on Wednesday, January 16, 2019. They had laid their sights on the attackers and were in position to neutralize them.
The Special Forces, under Kanja's command, relayed the information to members of the NSAC, led by Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua, who were monitoring the operation from Harambee House. Kinyua and other high-profile personnel were closely monitoring the operation.
With the go-ahead to make a final push, the Special Forces swung into action. Two terrorists were blown up using high-caliber weapons, and two others were killed at around 7am. Their weapons, with about 200 bullets each, were taken away, and eight grenades were recovered.
The first terrorist, a suicide bomber, had died in the early moments of the attack, detonating his suicide vest and killing himself and five others. He was dismembered, with one of his limbs found 40 meters away from the explosion.
A British SAS operative, who was in the country training Special Forces, also played a crucial role in the operation. Dramatic photos show him charging into a building single-handed, armed with a Colt Canada C8 assault rifle, to free cowering locals. He also helped carry an injured victim and led a woman to safety.
