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Kenya violence spirals as at
least 10 burnt alive
Author : DPA
Mon, 28 Jan 2008 05:10:04 GMT
Nairobi - Ethnic-based violence in Kenya's Rift Valley province
has left up to 150 dead since clashes ignited Thursday, reports
said, in a spiral of chaos that has engulfed the East African
nation after disputed elections. French broadcaster RFI put the
death toll at 150 after unrest erupted in the central town of
Nakuru last week. The local independent Daily Nation put the
number at 82.
The violence spread east Sunday to the flower-growing town of
Naivasha where at least 10 people were burnt alive after the house
they locked themselves in to escape an angry mob was set ablaze.
"I condemn this murderous and evil act in the strongest terms
possible," said opposition leader Raila Odinga, who claims last
month's polls were rigged.
The polls triggered the violence but have set off deep ethnic
tensions and resentment against the Kikuyu tribe, the same as
President Mwai Kibaki, which has traditionally held the levers of
power in Kenya.
The fighting has seen other tribes battle the Kikuyu, using
machetes, clubs and bows and arrows in what has descended into
brutal violence that has killed more than 700 in a month.
Some 250,000 people have been displaced, with many hiding in
churches and police stations and thousands camping at settlements
for the internally displaced.
Former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan is in the
country in a bid to find a solution to the political impasse, and
has asked each side to present three negotiators so formal talks
can begin.
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