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UPDATED ON: SUNDAY, JANUARY 20,
2008 10:59 GMT
Several dead in Kenya slum
clashes
At least three people have been killed in clashes in the Kenyan
capital as tribal violence flared for a fifth day, witnesses have
said.
Police recovered the bodies in Nairobi's Mathare slum on Sunday
after overnight clashes between gangs brought to 40 the number of
people killed in ethnic violence since Kenya's December 27
presidential election.
"Members of one community started terrorising members of the rival
community. One person was hacked to death, and this morning we
recovered another body," a police commander said.
Renewed violence continued in Mathare on Sunday, with homes set
ablaze.
Fighting erupted after members of Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe started to
evict of those of Kenya's Luo tribe, linked to supporting
opposition party chief, Raila Odinga.
Kenya's opposition has said it intends to resume protests over the
country's presidential election which it claims was rigged by the
government. The declaration came as five people were killed in the
Rift Valley region on Saturday.
"We are resuming our peaceful public rallies on Thursday," Henry
Kosgey, the chairman of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), told
reporters.
The violence so far has killed an estimated 650 people.
Protest crackdown
Three days of opposition protests that began on Wednesday, despite
a government ban, provoked a fierce crackdown by anti-riot and
paramilitary police.
Calm has returned in several towns across the country that were
hit by rioting.
Both ODM and the government have accused each other of inciting
genocide.
Odinga says Kibaki stole the closest-ever election in the east
African country.
International observers say the count was so chaotic it was
impossible to tell who won, and the government says the ODM also
rigged votes.
On Friday, Michael Ranneberger, US ambassador in Kenya, said there
had been "a lot of cheating on both sides".
The resulting protests have led Kenya's international financial
donors to threaten aid cuts after images of police shooting and
beating protesters drew widespread criticism.
Ceasefire call
But the government has rebuffed the threat.
Both Kibaki and Odinga have agreed in principle to talks, but
Kibaki has said he wants direct talks with Odinga, while the
opposition leader says he will negotiate only through a mediator
who can provide an internationally guaranteed agreement.
Kofi Annan, the former UN secretary-general, is due to arrive in
Kenya this week to bring the two parties together for talks.
Louis Michel,the European Union's aid commissioner, who met with
Kibaki and Odinga, urged both sides to start talks to end their
standoff.
"Mass meetings that can lead to aggression which can also lead to
powerful responses.
"I urge the parties to look for a solution. Now is the time for
ceasefire," he told reporters after meeting with the two leaders.
Source: Agencies
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