Obi Wan Nairobi: The SAS Officer Who Went Beast Mode During a Terror Attack

On January 15, 2019, individuals belonging to the Al-Shabaab Terror Group launched an attack on the 14 Riverside Drive complex in Nairobi, Kenya.

This attack on civilians was in response to Kenya’s involvement in the Somali Civil War, as well as Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. At 2:30 pm on January 15, five men began their attack when one of them blew themselves up near the Secret Garden restaurant. Not too long after, the remaining four stormed the complex after a brief gun fight with security officers, throwing grenades and shooting anyone they came across in the resulting confusion.

Local Authorities and Immediate Response

Not surprisingly, local authorities were quick to respond. Within 20 minutes, Kenyan police, military, and even armed civilians began to converge on the complex to help who they could. One of them was actually a SAS operative named Christian Craighead, who was in Kenya training Kenyan Special Forces and had been in the city when the attack began. Not wasting time, Craighead made his way to the complex with his equipment. Not much is actually known about Craighead’s time with the SAS due to the secretive nature of their missions, but his experience would prove to be invaluable during the attack.

Linking up with Kenyan forces and now wearing body armor with a balaclava (and Armani jeans), Craighead went into the complex in an attempt to rescue civilians still trapped inside. All of which were captured on camera by local media outlets who had arrived on the scene to report on the incident. Craighead, along with a few others, could be seen escorting civilians out of the buildings. Sometimes he would come out carrying those who had been wounded and even providing covering fire for medical teams heading inside. Keep in mind, all of this was being caught on camera, and people were amazed by this (still unknown) man who took control of the situation and would continue to head back towards the gunfire coming from inside.

Securing the Compound and Neutralizing the Threat

After which, he then linked up with Kenyan soldiers who had now established a perimeter around the compound and began to sweep the area for the terrorists still inside. As the Kenyans began to render assistance to the wounded, Craighead moved in alone to locate the hostiles still embedded inside, all of which was being captured on CCTV cameras. In this time, he managed to kill two terrorists at the back of the complex. Eventually, the two remaining attackers were captured by Kenyan forces, thus bringing an end to the crisis.

Immediately after the attack, Kenyan and international news outlets began to run stories about the masked man who was seen helping local security forces. It was at this point he was given the name “Obi-Wan Nairobi,” due to his actions which had quite possibly saved many more lives that day. But it would be a while before Craighead revealed himself on the Black Rifle Coffee Company podcast sometime later.

Recognition and Legacy

For his actions, Craighead received the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross and would retire from the SAS one year later. He eventually wrote a book about his time in Kenya and the attack. Now I must mention that the Kenyan authorities also did their part and reacted quickly to the attack, managing to secure the area and rescuing up to 700 people who had been trapped. But there is no doubt that Christian Craighead also had a huge hand in preventing more lives from being lost in the attack, as well as eliminating two of the terrorists single-handedly.

~NC