By Matthew Mpoke Bigg and James Macharia
NAIROBI, Sept 28 (Reuters) - Kenya is "at war" with Islamist militants who attacked a Nairobi shopping mall, the government said on Saturday as it faced questions about whether it had received advance intelligence warnings of the deadly strike.
A week after the raid on the Westgate shopping centre that killed 67 civilians and police and was claimed by the Somali militant group al Shabaab, the government has been trying to reassure Kenyans that it can protect them from further attacks.
Three Kenyan newspapers reported on Saturday that a year ago the country's National Intelligence Service (NIS) had warned of the presence of suspected al Shabaab militants in Nairobi and that they were planning to carry out "suicide attacks" on the Westgate mall and on a church in the city.
In front-page stories, the Nation, Standard and Star newspapers questioned whether the Kenyan government and military may have failed to act on this and more recent warnings this year by local and foreign intelligence services.
"It is not a 'yes' or 'no' answer," Mutea Iringo, principal secretary in the Ministry of Interior, told Reuters.
"Every day, we get intelligence and action is taken as per that intelligence and many attacks averted. But the fact that you get the intelligence does not mean something cannot happen," the senior official added.
"What we are saying is that we are at war, and that every day some young Kenyan is being radicalised by al Shabaab to kill Kenyans," Iringo said, calling on citizens across the east African nation to be alert and cooperate with authorities.
The newspaper reports emerged ahead of a meeting on Monday of the Kenyan parliament's defence and foreign relations committee which is expected to ask security chiefs how much warning they had of Saturday's assault.
In the mall attack that extended into a four-day siege, gunmen fired on shoppers and tossed grenades leaving a trail of victims and shocking Kenya and the world. Al Shabaab said it acted in revenge against Kenyan troops who have been fighting it in neighbouring Somalia for two years.
Britain's government said on Saturday a sixth British national had been identified among those killed at the mall. French and Canadian nationals also died.
The Star quoted another NIS briefing in February warning of a gun and grenade attack in Kenya similar to a three-day killing spree by militants in the Indian city of Mumbai in 2008.
In an editorial, the Standard said the reports pointed to "obvious" security lapses. "It is becoming increasingly apparent that the country's top security organs may have received adequate briefing on imminent terror threats," it said.
"Why they did not act in time to save the needless deaths at Westgate is astonishing and dumbfounding," it added.
The possibility that al Shabaab, which has carried out previous smaller gun and grenade attacks in Kenya, may be planning further high-profile strikes presents a major security challenge for President Uhuru Kenyatta, elected in March.
But the incident has also rallied foreign support for him as he confronts charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. He deines charges of orchestrating violence following Kenya's disputed 2007 elections.

FORENSIC PROBE UNDER WAY
Five of the mall attackers were killed and Kenyan authorities say they are holding eight people over the raid, which confirmed Western and regional fears about al Shabaab's ability to strike beyond Somalia's borders.
It also dented Kenya's vital tourism industry, although the finance minister says it will not have a long-term impact.
Kenyan officials have not so far specified the identities or nationalities of the attackers, saying forensic investigation of the wrecked mall building and of the dead will take time.
This has produced a deluge of unconfirmed speculation that radicalised diaspora Somalis from the United States and Europe may have been involved in the al Shabaab operation.
U.S., Israeli and European forensic experts are helping Kenya in the investigation.
A week after the attack, the five-storey, beige-coloured mall remained sealed off to the public. From outside, a spray of bullet holes was visible around one upstairs window.
A team of foreign officials wearing white protective clothing and yellow boots could be seen leaving the mall escorted by an armed man wearing a black flak jacket.
Kenyan and Western officials have said they cannot confirm speculation that Briton Samantha Lewthwaite, widow of one of the 2005 London suicide bombers, had a role in the mall attack. Some survivors said they saw an armed white woman.
Kenya requested a "red alert" wanted notice issued by Interpol for Lewthwaite, dubbed the "White Widow" by the British media, but said she was wanted in connection with a previous 2011 plot that was also linked by police to al Shabaab.
With the country's security services on high alert, some Kenyans said they were worried that the government may have failed to act on prior intelligence information.
"It sounds like laxity. If you get warnings ... you have got to listen to those warnings," said businessman Vipool Shah.

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  • A plume of black smoke billows over the Westgate Mall, in Nairobi, Kenya Monday, Sept. 23, 2013. Multiple large blasts have rocked the mall where a hostage siege is in its third day. Associated Press reporters on the scene heard multiple blasts and a barrage of gunfire. Security forces have been attempting to rescue an unknown number of hostages inside the mall held by al-Qaida-linked terrorists.(AP Photo/Jonathan Kalan)

  • Armed police from the General Service Unit take cover behind a wall during a bout of gunfire, outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Monday, Sept. 23, 2013. Hostages being held by al-Qaida-linked terrorists in a Nairobi mall have not been released despite an earlier statement from the military that "most" had been rescued, a person connected to the situation told The Associated Press on Monday. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Paramedics and police officers run outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi after heavy shooting started Monday, Sept. 23, 2013. Kenya's military launched a major operation at the upscale Nairobi mall and said it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during the standoff. (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)

  • Kenya security forces are seen behind a wall outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Monday morning, Sept. 23, 2013. Kenya's military launched a major operation at the upscale Nairobi mall and said it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during the standoff that killed at least 68 people and injured 175. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

  • Kenya security personnel take cover outside the Westgate Mall after shooting started inside the mall early Monday morning, Sept. 23, 2013. Kenya's military launched a major operation at the upscale Nairobi mall and said it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during the standoff that killed at least 68 people and injured 175. (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim)

  • Kenya security forces are seen behind a wall outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Monday morning, Sept. 23, 2013. Kenya's military launched a major operation at the upscale Nairobi mall and said it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during the standoff that killed at least 68 people and injured 175. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

  • Kenya security forces are seen behind a wall outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Monday morning, Sept. 23, 2013. Kenya's military launched a major operation at the upscale Nairobi mall and said it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during the standoff that killed at least 68 people and injured 175. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

  • Onlookers gather on a hill to observe the Westgate Mall after a bout of heavy gunfire just after dawn in Nairobi, Kenya Monday, Sept. 23, 2013. Helicopters circling overhead, Kenya's military launched a major operation Sunday night at the upscale Nairobi mall and claimed it had rescued "most" of the hostages being held captive by al-Qaida-linked militants during a standoff that killed at least 68 people and injured 175. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Relatives wait at the Nairobi City Mortuary following the mall attack in Kenya, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Kenyan authorities said Islamic extremist attackers remain inside the upscale Kenyan shopping mall, holding an unknown number of hostages, after killing at least 39 and injuring 150 during Saturday's attack. (AP Photo/Khalil Senosi)

  • Groups of onlookers gather on a road looking down over the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Multiple barrages of gunfire erupted Sunday morning from the upscale Kenyan mall where there is a hostage standoff with Islamic extremists nearly 24 hours after they attacked using grenades and assault rifles. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • A line of soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces run in front of the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Multiple barrages of gunfire erupted Sunday morning from the upscale Kenyan mall where there is a hostage standoff with Islamic extremists nearly 24 hours after they attacked using grenades and assault rifles. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces carry a wounded colleague, following the sound of explosions and gunfire, out of the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Associated Press journalists at the scene of a hostage standoff said a barrage of gunfire erupted from the upscale Kenyan mall Sunday morning and moments later two wounded Kenyan security forces were carried out of the mall. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Trucks of soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces arrive after dawn outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Islamic extremist gunmen lobbed grenades and fired assault rifles inside Nairobi's top mall Saturday, killing dozens and wounding over a hundred in the attack. Early Sunday morning, 12 hours after the attack began, gunmen remained holed up inside the mall with an unknown number of hostages. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Trucks of soldiers from the Kenya Defense Forces arrive after dawn outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Islamic extremist gunmen lobbed grenades and fired assault rifles inside Nairobi's top mall Saturday, killing dozens and wounding over a hundred in the attack. Early Sunday morning, 12 hours after the attack began, gunmen remained holed up inside the mall with an unknown number of hostages. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • Armed special force aim their guns at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya on Saturday, Sept. 21 2013, after gunmen threw grenades and opened fire during an attack that left multiple dead and dozens wounded. A witness to the attacks on the upscale shopping mall says that gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted(AP Photo/Khalil Senosi)

  • Civilians who had been hiding inside during the gun battle manage to flee from the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013. Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire Saturday, killing at least 22 people in an attack targeting non-Muslims at an upscale mall in Kenya's capital that was hosting a children's day event, a Red Cross official and witnesses said. (AP Photo/Jonathan Kalan)

  • A body is seen on the floor, below right, as smoke fills the air inside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013. Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire Saturday, killing at least 22 people in an attack targeting non-Muslims at an upscale mall in Kenya's capital that was hosting a children's day event, a Red Cross official and witnesses said. (AP Photo/Jonathan Kalan)

  • A woman who had been hiding during the gun battle runs for cover after armed police, seen behind, enter the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013. Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire Saturday, killing at least 22 people in an attack targeting non-Muslims at an upscale mall in Kenya's capital that was hosting a children's day event, a Red Cross official and witnesses said. (AP Photo/Jonathan Kalan)

  • An armed police officer takes cover during a bout of gunfire outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013. Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire Saturday killing at least 22 people in an attack targeting non-Muslims at an upscale mall in Kenya's capital that was hosting a children's day event, a Red Cross official and witnesses said. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

  • People run from the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya.

    Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire during an attack that left multiple dead and dozens wounded. A witness to the attacks on the upscale shopping mall says that gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted.

  • A woman who had been held hostage reacts after being released.

    Suspected terrorists engaged Kenyan security forces in a drawn out gun fight at the Westgate Mall in Nairboi.

  • Woman runs for cover.

    A woman who had been hiding during the gun battle runs for cover after armed police, seen behind, enter the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • Location of the attack.

    Graphic shows detail of shopping mall site of fatal gun attack in Nairobi, Kenya.

  • View inside the mall.

    Armed police take cover behind escalators as smoke fills the air inside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • Raw: Gunmen Attack Shopping Mall in Kenya

    Gunmen threw grenades and opened fire at an upscale mall in Kenya's capital on Saturday, killing at least 10 people.

  • Armed police on scene.

    Armed police leave after entering the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • Mall-goers flee after attack.

    Civilians who had been hiding inside during the gun battle manage to flee from the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • An armed police officer takes cover during a bout of gunfire outside the Westgate Mall.

    The mall in Kenya's capital was hosting a children's day event at the time of the attack, a Red Cross official and witnesses said.

  • Armed police at the Westgate Mall.

    Armed police crouch down and take position during a gun battle outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • Civilians leave the mall after gun battle.

    Civilians who had been hiding during the gun battle hold their hands in the air as a precautionary measure before being searched by armed police leading them to safety, inside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

  • A rescue worker helps a child outside the Westgate Mall.

  • Security helps a woman outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013, after gunmen threw grenades and opened fire during an attack that left multiple dead and dozens wounded.

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    Security helps people outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013, after gunmen threw grenades and opened fire during an attack that left multiple dead and dozens wounded.

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    A woman who had been hiding inside and managed to flee, sits in a state of shock, as an unidentified armed member of the security forces, above, keeps watch outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013.

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  • An injured person makes a phone call as he is helped on his arrival at the Aga Khan Hospital after the attack at the Westgate Mall.

  • An injured person arrives at the hospital after the attack on the Westgate Mall.

  • A injured child is wheeled away on a shopping trolley outside the Westgate Mall.

  • A security officer helps a wounded woman outside the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013, after gunmen threw grenades and opened fire during an attack that left multiple dead and dozens wounded. A witness to the attacks on the upscale shopping mall says that gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted. (AP Photo/Khalil Senosi)

  • An injured man arrives at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi after the attack at the Westgate Mall.

  • An injured man arrives at the Aga Khan Hospital after the attack at the Westgate Mall.

    A witness to the attacks says that gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted. Initial police reports had described the incident as a botched robbery. Witnesses say a half dozen grenades also went off along with volleys of gunfire in and around the mall.

  • A security guard helps a child outside the Westgate Mall.

    A witness to the attacks on the upscale shopping mall says that gunmen told Muslims to stand up and leave and that non-Muslims would be targeted.