[JURIST] Kenya’s Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku announced on Wednesday that Kenya deported 82 Somalis and rounded up hundreds of other undocumented immigrants in response to a series of attacks committed by Somali Militants since 2011. Since the crackdown [BBC report], almost 4,000 have been arrested, nearly 500 of whom remain in custody. Lenku stated [Reuters report] that the “process will continue until we do not have illegal aliens and those found to have refugee documents are taken to refugee camps.” The announcement comes two days after the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) [official website] expressed concern [press release] over the wave of arrests and its impact on Somali refugees and asylum seekers.

In January the trial [JURIST report] of four individuals accused of aiding the terrorists who perpetrated the September attack on the Westgate Mall in Nairoibi began. The Somali Islamist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, which left 62 dead and 175 injured. The attack affected the ongoing trial of Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto before the International Criminal Court, who requested [JURIST report] a postponement to return to Kenya. In September, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned [JURIST report] the attack and urged to perpetrators to be brought to justice.