- At least 30 persons are reported killed in the inter-clan clashes over water resources in north-eastern Kenya, local police sources confirmed today. Some 16 of these are children. Thousands are fleeing the violence, which are the most serious clashes in Kenya for over a decade.
Officials have confirmed at least 30 deaths in Kenya's north-eastern Mandera district, close to the Somali border. The UN's Children's Fund (UNICEF) speaks of the "brutal slaughter of at least 16 children" that apparently were caught up in the inter-clan clashes over water. It described "an attack by guns, swords and fire that seemed to specifically target youngsters."
The first attack occurred yesterday at El Golicha, a watering point for pastoralists and where members of the Garre clan live, some 10 kilometres from Elwak Town in Mandera District. The assailants apparently came from a rival clan, the Murule. The two have feuded over access to water for many years. Last time the Murule were apparently the victims of a Garre attack. Both the Murule and Garre clans are pastoralists of Somali origin.
During the early hours of 15 March, an estimated 40 attackers came to seek revenge, creeping into El Golicha while most of the Garre men were out guarding their livestock. They attacked the huts where children and women were sleeping, setting some ablaze, and using guns and swords to attack those who tried to flee.
According to local officials, the spiralling revenge acts have now caused up to 5000 villagers in the district to flee their homes as they expect further attacks. The Kenyan Red Cross today confirmed that more than 1000 families of three to five members each had left their homes. Residents had started fleeing the area "because of fear that they might be the next targets," Red Cross spokesman Anthony Mwangi said.
According to UNICEF Country Representative Heimo Laakkonen, this was "just one incident in a series that have engulfed communities in many parts of Mandera, and elsewhere in Kenya as well." In Mandera alone, over 20,000 people had been displaced by violence in recent months, Mr Laakkonen held.
- In the arid lands of Kenya, water means life, yet too often these days it is an excuse for killing and death, the UNICEF representative added. "No one wins in these conflicts. Whole livelihoods are destroyed, families are torn apart and it is always the children who suffer the most," he said, calling on Kenyan authorities to restore order and protect children.
Yesterday's massacre may have been "just one incident in a series," but it is however considered to be the most brutal so far. According to the Kenyan police, no inter-clan attack in has had a higher death toll than yesterday's slaughter. The attack was also far more brutal than earlier violence.
The Kenyan government has sent a large police force to the Mandera district to investigate the massacre and to boost security. The security operations are aimed at preventing new revenge act, hindering illegal movements over the Kenyan-Somali border and confiscating illegal weapons.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
front page
| news
| countries
| archive
| currencies
| news alerts login
| about afrol News
| contact
| advertise
| español