Around 400 Kenyan soldiers have arrived at the border town of Liboi to prepare for a push toward a key Somali town, reports say.

Kenya has sent extra troops to the Somali frontier, stepped up security checks and said it saw no reason for Somalis to flee, underlining fears about Somali Islamic militants slipping across the border after losing a power struggle.

KENYAN soldiers and helicopters beefed up defences at the Somali border yesterday after Ethiopian warplanes and ground forces attacked fleeing Islamists on the other side of the frontier.