Restricted movement at the border has lasted for 15 years, since former President Mwai Kibaki ordered the closure under the Linda Nchi operation in October 2011.
In February 2026, President William Ruto announced the reopening of the border that had been closed following multiple attacks by al-Shabaab militants.
President Ruto has now said that the border could not be reopened due to the escalation of war between the Somali National Army and rebel Jubaland forces.
“We were moving very well. Yes, until there was a huge disagreement between the government in Mogadishu and um the states, and unfortunately, there was an escalation of war between the Somali National Army and the Jubaland forces, which are right at the border in Kenya,” Ruto said in an interview on France 24.
The President argued that the occurrences have since complicated an existing framework for the border re-opening after the Somali National Army were pushed into Kenya.
“We had to support members of the Somali National Army, fly them, assist them so that we could pacify and reduce the war. That situation was getting better, but unfortunately, it took a turn, got worse,” Kenya’s President told the French broadcaster on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit held in Nairobi.
Ruto argued that stability in the Kenya-Somalia border further became complicated after the term of Mogadishu’s parliament expired in April 2026.
“And that situation now nobody knows where it’s going because we have tried to broker an engagement between the states and the government of Somalia. We have not been very successful, and we are still pushing between Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti as broad states. We are still trying to find a solution to it. So, the border for the time being is not open,” added Ruto.
Plans to open the border had earlier been initiated in 2023, but further attacks by al-Shabaab militants led to the postponement.
When Ruto announced its opening, he said there would be heavy deployment of security forces to ensure the move does not compromise safety.
The border closure 15 years ago was also due to the smuggling of illicit weapons and other contraband goods across the border.
