Kenya death-toll reaches 1,000
Red Cross says Kenyan death-toll surpasses 1,000
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Tuesday, 05, Feb 2008 03:51
More than 1,000 people have died in violence following disputed presidential elections in Kenya, the Red Cross said on Tuesday.
The revised death-toll came as talks to end the bitter political dispute resumed in Nairobi.
"One thousand plus have died since the conflict started," Kenyan Red Cross head Abbas Gullet told a news conference in the country's capital.
Mr Gullet explained more than 350,000 people had been displaced following the row over Mwai Kibaki's re-election as president in December last year.
Raila Odinga, the leader of the main opposition party the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), claims he was denied the presidency by electoral fraud.
Violence in the aftermath of the disagreement has since escalated into the reopening of decades-old tribal divisions.
Members of Mr Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe have been targeted for their perceived monopoly on Kenya's political and business sectors.
Hundreds of other residents have been the victim of separate tribal feuds, clashes between police and protestors and widespread looting.
Former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan is mediating reconciliation talks in Nairobi, but the latest round of discussions has been hit by the withdrawal of Cyril Ramaphosa,
The South African businessman, who was mediating in talks between Kenya's business leaders, returned home after the government expressed misgivings over his presence.
Mr Annan says the challenge now is to "get Kenya back from the brink".
"No society can remain prosperous without the rule of law and human rights," he said.
"Let your leaders know that you want peace and stability. Keep your voices high."