Nairobi, Kenya - Kenyan security forces have launched a military offensive in Somalia against the Al Qaeda-linked terrorist group Al Shabaab, a police commander confirmed here Sunday.

It is Kenya's first-ever cross-border offensive in 48 years, and comes a day after Internal Security Minister George Saitoti and Defence Minister Yusuf Hajji said the country was invoking article 51 of the UN Charter to pursue Al Shabaab into the Somali territory.

Kenya decided to act after Al Shabaab carried out a series of kidnappings and staged armed incursions into the country.

“Kenyan government is taking robust measures to protect and preserve its territorial integrity,” Saitoti told a news conference in Nairobi Saturday.

“The country has all the right to deal with aggressors whenever they are...For the first time, our country is faced with the most serious form of terrorism,” Saitoti said.

Pana 17/10/2011