Nairobi, Nov 17 (IANS): At least one person was shot dead and several others arrested early Monday as police conducted a massive joint security operation against two mosques in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa.

Mombasa divisional police commander Geoffrey Mayek said the raid was conducted on Sakina and Masjid Musa mosques to help flush out Muslim youth who were planning attacks in the coastal city.

Mayek said the police recovered grenades, several crude weapons and pistols during the operation led by anti-terrorism police and other units.

"Acting on intelligence report of alleged jihadi meeting, we raided the two mosques and managed to recover dangerous weapons and arrested radical Muslim youth. The officers are still combing the areas," Mayek told Xinhua.

"We suspect those arrested include Al Shabaab returnees plotting attacks in the coastal region. The raid was successful," the police commander added.

The Al Shabaab terrorist group of Somalia has continued to forcibly recruit people into its ranks, including children, and to target individuals perceived to support both the Kenyan and Somali governments and their partners.

The raid comes at a time when Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo has instructed clerics in the mosques to eject radical youths.

Police believe the two mosques are being used to radicalise youths and said that youths are being recruited into the Al Shabaab insurgent militia through the two mosques.

These youths are believed to be behind the recent gun attacks targeting the security apparatus in the resort city.