The Somali government Monday summoned the Kenyan ambassador in Mogadishu to protest the deportation of a senior official and his delegation from Nairobi on Sunday.
State minister at the Presidency Abshir Bukhaari who was at the head of an entourage of Somali officials visiting Kenya was denied entry at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport after it was alleged that he was using a Kenyan passport.
All members of his delegation whose mission to Kenya was not explained, were not spared.
Officials in Mogadishu have protested to the Kenyan ambassador who was told to explain why a senior Somali official and his entourage were turned away from the airport. There has been no official explanation from Nairobi as this latest incident risk aggravating already troubled relations between Somalia and Kenya.
The latest high-profile deportations come barely weeks after another senior Somali official was prevented from entering Kenya. Deputy Prime Minister Jibril Abdelrashid was refused entry to Nairobi after it was discovered that he was traveling with a Kenyan passport despite being a citizen of Somalia.
Meanwhile sources say the deportations from Kenyan involved officials linked to investigations of allies of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud including Bukhaari. Already an individual of interest in joint Kenya-US investigations Bukhaari was reportedly found with monies linked to financial impropriety.
Bukhaari is yet to respond to the allegation.
WN/as/APA