Kenya deploys senior official to tackle attacks in northern region

The Kenyan government on Wednesday deployed a senior security officer to help curb cross border terror attacks in its northeastern region.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery appointed Mohammed Saleh as security coordinator for the region, who will be responsible for coordinating and overseeing security and peace initiatives.

"Saleh is expected to work closely with the leadership of the region to deal with security challenges including radicalization among youths, ethnic conflicts and smuggling along the Kenya- Somalia border," Nkaissery told journalists in Nairobi.

Nkaissery said the government had also re-organized security committees in the region through deployment of new county commissioners.

The appointment comes in the wake of the attack on the Garissa University College by Somalia-based Al-Shabaab gunmen that killed 148 people.

Kenyans have blamed slow response by security officers for the high death toll.