Militants massacre 36 in Kenya; gov't orders shake-up

Militant extremists targeting non-Muslims swept into a Kenyan quarry camp Tuesday, killing at least 36 workers and sparking a shake-up in the East African nation's national security leadership.

President Uhuru Kenyatta fired Interior Minister Ole Lenku and announced that Inspector-General of Police David Kimaiyo had resigned following the attack near the Somali border. Former army general Joseph Nkaissery was named Interior Minister and will be in charge of national security.

The jihadist group al-Shabab, which is fighting to establish a hard-line Islamic state in Somalia, claimed responsibility. The attack was similar to an attack on a Kenyan bus 10 days ago that left 28 people dead.

Al-Shabab has made armed forays into northern Kenya since Kenya began sending troops into Somalia in 2011 to combat the insurgency.

Kenyatta, in an address from State House in Nairobi, acknowledged serious security weaknesses in the nation of 45 million people.

"I hurt and grieve with you," Kenyatta said. "In due course, our security situation will turn around."

Kenyatta also asked the National Assembly to extend its session to address the security issue, Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper reported.

Kenyatta referred to the terrorists as "deranged animals" and asked for national unity to fight them. "We come to the aid of terrorists when we shout at each other," Kenyatta said.

Al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage said the attack was in retribution for Kenya's troop presence in Somalia and alleged atrocities committed by the Kenyan army there. Al-Shabab claimed a recent airstrike killed innocent people. The Kenyan government said the airstrike was in response to the Nov. 22 bus attack.

At the quarry, a group of about 50 heavily armed men walked into the camp as the workers slept, quarry worker Peter Nderitu said. Nderitu said when he heard the shooting he ran and hid in a trench from where he could hear his colleagues being asked to recite the Shahada, an Islamic creed declaring oneness with God.

Some survivors have told the police that Muslims who were at the site were spared, the Daily Nation reported.

Gunshots followed. Nderitu said the bodies of his colleagues were in two rows and nearly all had been shot in the back of the head.

Contributing: Associated Press