Tragedy in Kenya: Mall shooting kills 72 civilians
Katie Barner, World
3 October 2013
On Sept. 21, Kenya was met with a terrible tragedy at one of the country’s largest commercial malls, Westgate Mall in Nairobi.
Al-Shabaab, the Somalia-Islamic based al-Qaeda group who claimed responsibility for the attacks, held innocent shoppers hostage through the following Tuesday.
As of Friday, Sept. 27, 72 bodies had been discovered, over 175 people were injured and there are still many more trapped under the rubble. The mall attackers even tortured some of hostages: they cut off hands, noses and hung some of their victims.
President of Kenya Uhuru Kenyatta says that some of his close relatives were included among the dead.
Three floors of the mall collapsed, trapping many bodies. A terrorist’s body was among those trapped. Five other terrorists were shot and killed, and 11 other suspects have been arrested. (read more)
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Witnesses quit over security fears in Kenyatta ICC trial
By AFP
18 July 2013THE HAGUE — Two witnesses due to testify in Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta's upcoming crimes against humanity trial have withdrawn because of security concerns, the International Criminal Court said on Thursday.Testimony by a third witness was also no longer needed to prove the case, chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda's office said in a statement sent to AFP. (read more)
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Eight killed in gun attack in Kenyan town - Red Cross
By Duncan Miriri, Reuters
18 Apr 2013
Gunmen shot dead eight people when they sprayed bullets into a restaurant in the eastern Kenyan town of Garissa on Thursday, the Kenya Red Cross said.
The east African nation has suffered a series of grenade and gun attacks since it sent troops into neighbouring Somalia in late 2011 to pursue the al Shabaab rebels linked to al Qaeda.
Though the wave of attacks on the capital Nairobi, the port city of Mombasa, and Garissa has tapered off in recent weeks, the latest incident shows the new government of President Uhuru Kenyatta will still have to wrestle with insecurity. (read more)
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ICC charges contributed to peaceful elections – US
Kevin Kelley
April 5 2013
The indictments issued by the International Criminal Court against prominent Kenyans helped prevent violence during the March elections, a US State Department official said on Thursday.
"The fact that these indictments have been out there has had an effect in terms of the peacefulness of this past election," declared Stephen Rapp, the US ambassador-at-large for war crimes. (read more)
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| US ambassador-at-large for war crimes Stephen Rapp said April 4, 2013 the indictments issued by the International Criminal Court against prominent Kenyans helped prevent violence during the March elections. |
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Team on the Way to Collect Congo War Crimes Suspect
20 March 2013
By Jeffrey Gettleman
NAIROBI, Kenya — American officials on Wednesday said that a team from the International Criminal Court was on its way to Rwanda to collect a war crimes suspect who had turned himself in to the American Embassy and that they were hoping Rwanda would cooperate. Rwanda has indicated that it would not interfere with the transfer of the suspect, Bosco Ntaganda, a rebel commander nicknamed the Terminator, to the International Criminal Court at The Hague, where he has been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. ( Read more)
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War Crimes Suspect Leads Early Kenya Vote Tally
5 March 2013
By Jeffrey Gettleman
NAIROBI, Kenya — Uhuru Kenyatta, a Kenyan politician who has been charged by the International Criminal Court with crimes against humanity, was leading by a wide margin in the Kenya election on Tuesday, with nearly half the votes counted.
Mr. Kenyatta, who comes from one of the richest, most powerful families in Africa and has been accused of bankrolling death squads that killed women and children during the chaos of Kenya’s election five years ago, was leading 54 percent to 42 percent over the second-place candidate, Raila Odinga, Kenya’s prime minister. (Read more)
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Vote Count Leader in Kenya Faces U.S. With Tough Choices
By Jeffrey Gettleman
8 March 2013
NAIROBI, Kenya — He has been charged with heinous crimes, accused of using a vast fortune to bankroll death squads that slaughtered women and children. His running mate also faces charges of crimes against humanity, and as Kenya’s election drew closer, the Obama administration’s top official for Africa issued a thinly veiled warning during a conference call about the vote, saying that Kenyans are, of course, free to pick their own leaders but that “choices have consequences.” (Read more)
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War Crimes Suspect Leads Early Kenya Vote Tally
5 March 2013
By Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
NAIROBI, Kenya — Uhuru Kenyatta, a Kenyan politician who has been charged by the International Criminal Court with crimes against humanity, was leading by a wide margin in the Kenya election on Tuesday, with nearly half the votes counted.
Mr. Kenyatta, who comes from one of the richest, most powerful families in Africa and has been accused of bankrolling death squads that killed women and children during the chaos of Kenya’s election five years ago, was leading 54 percent to 42 percent over the second-place candidate, Raila Odinga, Kenya’s prime minister. (Read more)
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On Eve of Vote, Fragile Valley in Kenya Faces New Divisions
By Jeffrey Gettleman
2 March 2013
KIAMBAA, Kenya — After another long day, Joseph Kairuri Mwangi walked back to his farmhouse shack, the late afternoon sun slanting behind him, his strides slow, his shoes muddy with rich, freshly turned earth.
It has been five years since his right hand was nearly cut off, but it still hurts.
“Right here,” he said, gingerly touching the scars. “I still feel pain right here.”
This whole area is a land of scars. On the shanties made from burned-up sheet metal, salvaged from homes set afire by mobs. ( Read more)
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Neighbors Kill Neighbors as Kenyan Vote Stirs Old Feuds
By Gefrrey Gettleman
21 February 2013
MALINDI, Kenya — In a room by the stairs, Shukrani Malingi, a Pokomo farmer, writhed on a metal cot, the skin on his back burned off. Down the hall, at a safe distance, Rahema Hageyo, an Orma girl, stared blankly out of a window, a long scar above her thimble-like neck. She was nearly decapitated by a machete chop — and she is only 9 months old. (Read more)
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Kenya: Suspected militant killed by bomb where presidential contender was to address campaign
By The associated Press
19 February 2013
NAIROBI, Kenya — A suspected militant died while planting an improvised explosive device in eastern Kenya at a venue where one of the country’s presidential contenders was going to hold a campaign rally, officials said Sunday. (Read more)
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Police Killing in Kenya Deepens Aura of Menace Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times 15 November 2012 NAIROBI, Kenya — John Kioko Muthini, a high school student, was playing pool with his friends a little more than two weeks ago in a slum on this city’s fringe when two police officers walked in, looking for a thief. They ordered everyone to their knees, and then, numerous witnesses said, they shot Mr. Muthini in the head. Muthini Ndeto waiting to claim the body of his son, John, a student shot dead by officers in an episode considered to be typical of the police force. His friends said that his last words, as he begged for his life, were “It’s not me.” Last weekend, in a remote valley in northern Kenya, several dozen rookie police officers were sent to chase down an especially tough gang of cattle rustlers. It was dark, about 4 a.m., and the rustlers knew the officers were coming. As soon as the officers marched in, single file, they were mowed down by automatic weapons. Police officials said that at least 30 officers, maybe more, were killed, with their bodies left to fester in the sun for several days. ( read more)
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Kenya wary of being seen as an occupying force in Somalia port Richard Lough Reuters 5 Oct 2012KISMAYU, Somalia (Reuters) - From the rooftop of Kismayu's rundown port, Kenyan troops scoured the waters across to the southern Somali city, part of an operation to flush out rebel remnants after al Qaeda-backed militants fled last week from their last major stronghold. While Somali government troops and militia fighters allied to Mogadishu patrol Kismayu's sandy streets, Kenya's army is mostly camped out at outlying sites, keen not to alarm a population that traditionally opposes foreign intervention. "We don't want to be seen as an occupying force," Colonel Cyrus Oguna, a Kenyan army spokesman, told a Reuters reporter travelling with Kenyan forces. The allied forces attacked Kismayu by sea, land and air last week, storming a wide, windswept bay where on Friday a beached merchant vessel waited to disgorge its military cargo. (read more)
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Kenyan minister suspended for hate speech
Al Jazeera 27 September, 2012 Ferdinand Waititu, a Kenyan junior minister was suspended from his government post after being charged with incitement and hate speech for allegedly giving an address that led to the killing of at least two people. A Kenyan court had earlier charged Waititu, an assistant minister in the water ministry, with the two offences. He has denied the charges but was remanded in police custody until Friday, when a hearing on his bail application will be held. ( read more)
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Kenyan fighter jets bomb Somali city Al Jazeera 25 September, 2012 Aircraft target airport in southern city of Kismayo, where Kenya says al-Shabab is operating its last major base. Kenyan fighter jets have bombarded an airport in southern Somalia, where they are fighting al-Qaeda linked al-Shabab fighters, officials have said. The strikes took place in the port city of Kismayo on Tuesday. "Our forces have reached Kismayo with jets and they have destroyed the armoury and a warehouse used by al-Shabab at the airport," Cyrus Oguna, a Kenyan army spokesperson, said. ( read more)
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Mass graves found in Kenya's delta region Al Jazeera 18 September, 2012 Graves discovered in Kilelengwani village, a week after at least 38 people were killed in tribal violence in the area. Two mass graves have been discovered in Kenya's coastal Tana Delta region, the number and identities of the bodies in the graves are unknown, police say. The discovery of the graves comes a week after at least 38 people were shot, hacked and burnt to death after two tribes fought over land and water in the same area. ( read more)
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Dozens Killed in Kenya Ethnic Clashes
By Aljazeera
10 September 2012
Tribesmen have attacked a village in country's southeast, torching homes and sparking clashes that killed 38 people.Tribesmen have attacked a village in southeastern Kenya, torching homes and sparking clashes that killed at least 38 people, in the latest round of tit-for-tat ethnic violence to plague the area, officials said.
The vendetta between the Pokomo farming community and their Orma pastoralist neighbours already left 52 dead last month in Kenya's worst tribal killings in years. (read more)
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Genocide Watch Alert: Kenya
2 May 2012
Since late-February 2008, when Kenya’s 2007 post-election violence finally ceased as the result of external mediation and the formation of a coalition government, the Republic of Kenya has made much progress toward good governance and national stability. However, the government is still resisting indictments by the International Criminal Court against leading politicians over the 2007 violence.
Tensions are again rising as the first presidential and parliamentary elections under the new constitution are set to take place March 4, 2013. As prescribed by Kenya’s 2010 constitution, the upcoming elections will launch the new devolved government structure, in which the country will be separated into 47 counties and new regional political powers will be elected.
As districts and boundaries are set to merge under the new county system, many local populations feel their territorial control is under threat. As a result, ethnic tensions and violence are increasing throughout the country. Genocide Watch places Kenya at Stage 5 (Polarization) on the 8 Stages of Genocide and again issues a Genocide Watch due to the current political climate and the country’s history of political and ethnic violence.
Genocide Watch is particularly concerned with the outbreak of ethnic violence targeting the Turkana people in the Isiolo region of Northern Kenya. In the past year, escalating violence has killed over 70 Turkana and approximately 10,000 more have been displaced.
The Isiolo region has been traditionally diverse, home to numerous different ethnic groups, including the Turkana, Borana, Somali, Meru and Samburu communities. These communities have generally coexisted peacefully, with occasional tribal violence attributed to traditional cattle-rustling. Disputes over territory and power due to the upcoming elections have had serious effects in the Isiolo region.
Beginning in mid-2011, a pattern of violence arose that has specifically targeted members of the Turkana tribe. The primary perpetrators of the violence have been Somali and Borana tribesmen. Contrary to official reports that have dismissed the violence as traditional cattle-rustling among rival pastoral communities, recent attacks seem to have been motivated by ethnic animosity alone, instigated by political and economic prospects. According to local reports in January 2012, attacks against the Turkana lacked the traditional motive of theft of livestock or property, and had characteristics of genocidal massacres.
Borana government officials are believed to be arming Borana and Somali communities to drive out Turkana communities that would back their electoral opponents.
There are also mounting disputes over land ownership. Competition over communal land that provides water resources and new economic opportunities, such as a proposed resort city, has also aggravated ethnic animosity, resulting in violent clashes.
Genocide Watch recognizes the following to be early warning signs of genocidal violence in the Isiolo region:
- The denial of Kenyan identity cards to Turkana people- part of a vetting process that lawfully should not apply to Kenyan Turkana- by a biased committee of Borana and government officials;
- Systematic attacks on Turkana homes and villages, including fatal attacks, burning and looting;
- Indiscriminant killing of Turkana women and children;
- Deliberate destruction of Turkana land and agricultural resources;
- Violent attacks on Turkana planned by Borana politicians;
- A history of ethnic discrimination against the Turkana;
- Government corruption.
Although few human rights groups have noted these threats to the Turkana, Genocide Watch believes their situation is at level 6, Preparation, in the 8 Stages of Genocide.
Please submit information to Kenya@genocidewatch.org.
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Genocide Watch: Kenya
1 January 2008
Genocide Watch has called a Genocide Alert because of genocidal massacres that are increasing daily in Kenya in the wake of a disputed election between President Mwai Kibaki, who is a member of the Kikuyu ethnic group, and Mr. Raila Odinga, who is ethnically a Luo.
Ethnic riots have broken out in Nairobi, Kisumu, Eldoret, and numerous other places in Kenya. People have been pulled from their cars and their identification cards checked for their names, which symbolize their ethnic identity, and then killed if they belong to groups being targeted. Hundreds of people have already been murdered. Today a church in Eldoret was locked and the people inside were burned to death by a mob.
Ethnic massacres are an indicator that the risk of genocide in Kenya has risen to Stage 6, the Preparation stage. Kenya has not yet descended into actual genocide. However, the next stage in the process is actual genocide, and Kenya is close to that stage. Genocide can be bilateral, with perpetrators from two (or more) groups killing members of other groups because of their ethnic identity. Burundi had such bilateral genocide from 1993-1995.
President Kabaki claimed victory and was sworn in for another term as President despite strong evidence of election fraud in Kikuyu districts, some of which reported more votes than the voters registered in the districts. The European Commission and African Union have called for independent inquiries into the vote counting process, which the Kenyan Election Commission said gave a narrow victory to Kibaki, despite his party's loss of many seats in Parliament.
Genocide Watch makes the following recommendations:
1. No country should recognize or congratulate President Kibaki for his "re-election" until the results are confirmed by independent election inquiries.
2. Mr. Odinga should publically denounce violence against Kikuyus, and President Kibaki should forbid violence against Luos and other ethnic groups.
3. President Kibaki and Mr. Odinga should declare their willingness to abide by the decision of an independent election inquiry commission whose members are named by both men, including trusted leaders from other African countries.
4. Both President Kibaki and Mr. Odinga should refrain from holding mass rallies, and should firmly forbid their supporters from joining criminal militias that are murdering and looting. Members of such militias should be arrested quickly and tried for their crimes.
5. Religious and civil society groups in Kenya should vigorously oppose the violence and protect people who are targeted because of their ethnic identity.
6. The African Union should begin immediate planning to send well equipped police forces to Kenya to quell the ethnic rioting there. The United Nations should condemn the violence and financially support African Union efforts to mediate the dispute and prevent further violence.
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Un journaliste kenyan fuit après avoir révélé la présence au Kenya d'un génocidaire
By Afriquejet
10 juillet 2012
Le journaliste d'investigation, M. John Allan Namu, a fui le Kenya après avoir révélé qu'une unité militaire secrète offre une protection au fugitif du génocide rwandais, Félicien Kabuga, recherché dans le cadre du génocide dans son pays. La NTV, une chaîne de télévision privée kenyane, a révélé qu'un réseau au sein de l'armée kenyane semblait offrir une protection tous azimuts à Kabuga.
Des sources ont déclaré à la PANA que le journaliste s'est réfugié en Finlande pour échapper aux représailles de l'unité spéciale de protection.
L'enquête a été réalisée de janvier à mai, mais n'a été diffusée que le 8 juillet, au grand dam du gouvernement kenyan qui nie toute implication.
Le journaliste a indiqué que ses plans pour tenir la réunion ont achoppé à la dernière minute après que les services secrets (NSIS) eurent vent de l'affaire.
Sur les traces du fugitif, Namu est tombé sur des documents qui, selon lui, ont été fournis par une personne liée à l'unité de protection, montrant que le suspect du génocide rwandais est arrivé au Kenya où il a été rapidement présenté comme un réfugié somalien.
La lettre adressée à toutes les unités du renseignement militaire, présente Kabuga sous le nom de Sadiki Nzakobi, avant de le nommer au grade de capitaine de la compagnie Delta où il servait jusqu'à sa démission en septembre 1998.
La chaine de télévision kenyane avait d'abord reçu une alerte concernant le fugitif rwandais après la disparition de Michael Sarunei, un tireur d'élite militaire qui avait montré des photos secrètes de Kabuga en convalescence dans un hôpital militaire kenyan.
Dans son enquête, l'équipe de NTV s'est rendue au Rwanda, où elle a rencontré le procureur, qui s'est interrogé sur la compétence de la police kenyane d'agir sur la base d'informations fournies au Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies, indiquant que le suspect a quitté le Kenya pour la Belgique.
© 2012 Afriquejet
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Les Mau Mau présentent à Londres les preuves de leurs tortures par les colons britanniques
Par APA-Nairobi
13 juillet 2012
Les combattants de la Liberté pour l’indépendance du Kenya, connus sous le nom de Mau Mau, qui exigent d’être dédommagés par le gouvernement britannique pour les tortures qu’ils ont subies durant la lutte d’indépendance, doivent étaler lundi à Londres, les preuves des sévices dont ils ont été victimes pendant la période coloniale, a appris APA vendredi à Nairobi.
Ce dossier monté par les survivants des camps de détention tristement célèbres, administrés par les colons dans les années 50 et 60, prendra 11 jours durant lesquels les anciens combattants de la liberté du Kenya vont tenter de prouver qu’ils étaient victimes d’atrocités, a indiqué le quotidien Daily Nation.
Dans le dossier soumis à la cour en 2011, Ndiku Mutwiwa Mutua, Paulo Muoka Nzili et Wambugu Wa Nyingi, expliquent qu’en compagnie d’autres combattants, ils ont été envoyés dans des camps de détention pour s’être opposés au gouvernement colonial. (read more)
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| Le camp de réfugiés de Dadaab, au Kenya, le 31 juillet 2011 -© Copyright aufait 2008-2012 |
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| Kenya: le camp de réfugiés de Dadaab menacé par une pénurie de fonds
Par AFP
12 juillet 2012
Une pénurie de fonds menace le financement des services essentiels dans le complexe de camps de réfugiés de Dadaab, au Kenya, le plus vaste au monde, mettant en danger des dizaines de milliers de vies, ont averti jeudi des organisations humanitaires.
"Des dizaines de milliers de vies sont menacées, parce que l'argent pour les services essentiels devrait être épuisé d'ici deux ou trois mois", explique dans un communiqué un groupe de huit ONG, parmi lesquelles CARE, Save the Children, Oxfam, l'International Rescue Comittee (IRC) ou Terre des Hommes.
Une "pénurie grave de financement", évaluée à 25 millions de dollars, va avoir des conséquences pour au moins 200.000 réfugiés, essentiellement somaliens, ayant fui la violence et la faim dans leur pays, poursuivent ces ONG. (read more)
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9 January 2008 "Kenya Crisis Worsens as Opposition Cools to Talks" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
8 January 2008 "Kenyan Leader and Opponent to Meet" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
29 January 2008 "Revenge Killings Stoke a Violent Cycle in Kenya" by Stephanie McCrummen, The Washington Post
12 February 2008 "A Deal We Can Live With" by Maina Kiai and L. Muthoni Wanyeki, The New York Times
11 February 2008 "Kenya's Middle Class Feeling Sting of Violence" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
28 January 2008 "Having Driven Out Business, Kenyan Town Faces Consequences" by Stephanie McCrummen, The
Washington Post
9 February 2008 "Annan Sees Small Gains in Peace Talks in Kenya" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
8 February 2008 "U.S. Intensifies Efforts to End Deadly Conflict in Kenya" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
6 February 2008 "The Kenyane Opposition Lodges a Complaint in the CPI" by Nouvel Obs
6 February 2008 "Death Toll in Kenya Exceeds 1,000, but Talks Reach Crucial Phase" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York
Times
5 February 2008 "South African Bows Out of Mediation" by AP, The New York Times
2 February 2008 "Spreading Banditry Dilutes Benefits of a Plan for Ethnic Peace in Kenya" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York
Times
2 February 2008 "A New Chapter in Ethnic Cleansing" by The New York Times
1 February 2008 "Second Lawmaker Is Killed as Kenya's Riots Intensify" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
31 January 2008 "Official Sees Kenyan Ethnic Cleansing" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
7 January 2008 "Kenya Kikuyus, Long Dominant, Now Routed" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
6 January 2008 "Seeds of Genocide Were Sown a Decade Ago by Moi" by Sam Kiley, The Guardian
6 January 2008 "No Country for Old Hatreds" Op-Ed by Binyavanga Wainana, The New York Times
6 January 2008 "Kenyan City Is Gripped By Violence" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
4 January 2008 "Kenyan Riot Police Turn Back Rallying Protesters" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
3 January 2008 "Kenyan Official Calls for Vote Probe" by Stephanie McCrummen and Howard Schneider, The Washington
Post
3 January 2008 "Ambition and Horror in Kenya" Editorial, The New York Times
3 January 2008 "Tribal Rage Tears at Diverse Kenyan City" by Stephanie McCrummen, The Washington Post
3 January 2008 "Kenya, Known for Its Stability, Topples Into Post Election Chaos" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
2 January 2008 "Mob Burns Church in Kenya" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
1 January 2008 "Genocide Watch: Kenya" by Dr. Gregory Stanton, President, Genocide Watch
1 January 2008 "Fighting Intensifies After Election in Kenya" by Jeffrey Gettleman, The New York Times
1 January 2008 "Ethnic Fault Lines Emerge in Kenya's Post-Election Turmoil" by Stephanie McCrummen, The Washington
Post
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