Post by Onyango Oloo on Jul 21, 2014 19:42:50 GMT 3
www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28397210
Gunmen in Kenya kill four in Mombasa
Gunmen on a motorcycle have killed at least four people and injured several others in the Kenyan city of Mombasa.
Police were quoted by local media as saying that the gunmen had fired indiscriminately at passers-by.
The port city has seen a wave of violence in recent months, with a number of bombings and gun attacks.
The violence has largely been attributed to Somali al-Shabab militants but many say local political rifts are to blame.
Witnesses said the gunmen rampaged through the streets of Kenya's second-largest city.
'Shooting carelessly'
Peter Musyoki, a resident in Mombasa's Likoni area who saw the shooting, said the two masked men were armed with a rifle and a pistol.
"I saw two men dressed in black with a red ribbon around their heads," he said. "They walked on foot and were just shooting carelessly at anyone they saw."
The gunmen reportedly said the attack was revenge for violence against ethnic Kikuyus in Mpeketoni.
The Reuters news agency say the gunmen also handed out leaflets saying the attack was retribution for last month's violence in Mpeketoni, a town about 300km (185 miles) north of Mombasa.
More than 60 people were killed in two days of violence there in June and President Uhuru Kenyatta blamed "local political networks" for the attacks.
Ethnic tension
Most of the dead were ethnic Kikuyus, like the president.
Critics said Mr Kenyatta was trying to put the blame on his rival Raila Odinga, an ethnic Luo, whom he defeated in last year's presidential election.
Correspondents say political allegiances in Kenya tend to follow ethnic lines and inter-ethnic tensions have led to bloody violence in the past.
A disputed poll in 2007 sparked weeks of ethnic violence that left more than 1,200 people dead and badly damaged the economy.
map
Kenya - and Mombasa in particular - was once a popular tourist destination but it has suffered from a wave of attacks in recent years.
Several foreign governments, including the US and Britain, have issued travel warnings advising their citizens to avoid Mombasa.
As well as political tension, Somalia's Islamist militia al-Shabab say they have been behind several of the recent attacks in Kenya.
On Friday, they said they were responsible for an attack near the town of Witu, some 50km (30 miles) from the resort island of Lamu, in which seven people were killed, including four police officers.
Police were quoted by local media as saying that the gunmen had fired indiscriminately at passers-by.
The port city has seen a wave of violence in recent months, with a number of bombings and gun attacks.
The violence has largely been attributed to Somali al-Shabab militants but many say local political rifts are to blame.
Witnesses said the gunmen rampaged through the streets of Kenya's second-largest city.
'Shooting carelessly'
Peter Musyoki, a resident in Mombasa's Likoni area who saw the shooting, said the two masked men were armed with a rifle and a pistol.
"I saw two men dressed in black with a red ribbon around their heads," he said. "They walked on foot and were just shooting carelessly at anyone they saw."
The gunmen reportedly said the attack was revenge for violence against ethnic Kikuyus in Mpeketoni.
The Reuters news agency say the gunmen also handed out leaflets saying the attack was retribution for last month's violence in Mpeketoni, a town about 300km (185 miles) north of Mombasa.
More than 60 people were killed in two days of violence there in June and President Uhuru Kenyatta blamed "local political networks" for the attacks.
Ethnic tension
Most of the dead were ethnic Kikuyus, like the president.
Critics said Mr Kenyatta was trying to put the blame on his rival Raila Odinga, an ethnic Luo, whom he defeated in last year's presidential election.
The leaflets distributed by the gunmen on Sunday said the attack was "revenge for our brothers who were killed in Mpeketoni".
It continued: "You Luos, you wont stay in peace, and you Raila [Odinga], if you have anything to do, just do, we are not fearing you at all."
It continued: "You Luos, you wont stay in peace, and you Raila [Odinga], if you have anything to do, just do, we are not fearing you at all."
Correspondents say political allegiances in Kenya tend to follow ethnic lines and inter-ethnic tensions have led to bloody violence in the past.
A disputed poll in 2007 sparked weeks of ethnic violence that left more than 1,200 people dead and badly damaged the economy.
map
Kenya - and Mombasa in particular - was once a popular tourist destination but it has suffered from a wave of attacks in recent years.
Several foreign governments, including the US and Britain, have issued travel warnings advising their citizens to avoid Mombasa.
As well as political tension, Somalia's Islamist militia al-Shabab say they have been behind several of the recent attacks in Kenya.
On Friday, they said they were responsible for an attack near the town of Witu, some 50km (30 miles) from the resort island of Lamu, in which seven people were killed, including four police officers.
reliefweb.int/report/kenya/armed-men-motorbike-kill-least-four-mombasa-medic
07/20/2014 21:42 GMT
MOMBASA, July 20, 2014 (AFP) - At least four people were killed in the Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa on Sunday in an attack by armed men on a motorbike, according to medical sources.
Another eight people were wounded in the shooting, said the same source.
Earlier, the police said there had been two fatalities.
"At 8:30 pm (1730 GMT) people on a motorbike shot and killed two people and injured two others in the area of Soweto," Mombasa's chief of police Robert Kitur told AFP.
He added that the identity of the killers was not yet known.
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the shooting.
Mombasa has been the scene of worsening unrest in recent months with a string of shootings and bombings blamed on Somalia's Shebab rebels or local supporters.
The Al-Qaeda-linked group say the attacks on Kenyan soil are in retaliation for Kenya's military intervention in Somalia.
On Friday night seven people were killed in an attack on a bus near the Kenyan holiday island of Lamu. Among the dead were two police officers.
Responsibility for that attack was claimed by the Shebab who said it was "ready to act or attack anywhere necessary within Kenya".
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www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2014/07/deaths-shooting-rampage-kenya-mombasa-20147214444141458.html
Deaths in Mombasa shooting rampage
At least four people were killed and several others injured in a shooting rampage in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa, police said.
Witnesses said two attackers shot at people indiscriminately on the edge of Kenya's second-largest city and scattered leaflets saying Sunday's attack was retribution for last month's raid on Mpeketoni, a town about 300km north of Mombasa.
"[...] Four people have been killed and several others injured," said Robert Kitur, Mombasa County police commander, adding: "They did not steal anything. They just shot." Kitur said the police were pursuing the gunmen.
Peter Musyoki, a resident in Mombasa's Likoni area who witnessed the shooting, said two masked men toting a rifle and a pistol haphazardly shot at passersby.
"I saw two men dressed in black with a red ribbon around their heads," he said. "They walked on foot and were just shooting carelessly at anyone they saw," Musyoki said.
The latest attack will further dent Kenya's beleaguered tourist industry after a wave of deadly attacks and will deepen public frustrations about poor security.
About 50 people were killed when gunmen raided Mpeketoni in Lamu County, a coastal region where about 100 people in total have died since mid-June in a series of ambushes and raids.
Al-Shabab claims
Somalia's al-Shabab fighters have claimed responsibility for many of the attacks but the government, including President Uhuru Kenyatta, has suggested local politicians were behind the incidents.
Critics say the comments by Kenyatta, an ethnic Kikuyu, were political point-scoring against Raila Odinga, a Luo who lost to Kenyatta in last year's election but has been whipping up crowds with anti-government rallies.
The leaflets distributed at Likoni, warning Odinga and his community, could further fan an already tense political atmosphere in Kenya.
"This is a revenge for our brothers who were killed in Mpeketoni and you Luos, you won't stay in peace, and you Raila if you have anything to do, just do, we are not fearing you at all," said one of the leaflets seen by Reuters news agency.
A disputed poll in 2007 sparked weeks of ethnic bloodletting that left more than 1,200 people dead and crippled the economy.
Source:Agencies
Witnesses said two attackers shot at people indiscriminately on the edge of Kenya's second-largest city and scattered leaflets saying Sunday's attack was retribution for last month's raid on Mpeketoni, a town about 300km north of Mombasa.
"[...] Four people have been killed and several others injured," said Robert Kitur, Mombasa County police commander, adding: "They did not steal anything. They just shot." Kitur said the police were pursuing the gunmen.
Peter Musyoki, a resident in Mombasa's Likoni area who witnessed the shooting, said two masked men toting a rifle and a pistol haphazardly shot at passersby.
"I saw two men dressed in black with a red ribbon around their heads," he said. "They walked on foot and were just shooting carelessly at anyone they saw," Musyoki said.
The latest attack will further dent Kenya's beleaguered tourist industry after a wave of deadly attacks and will deepen public frustrations about poor security.
About 50 people were killed when gunmen raided Mpeketoni in Lamu County, a coastal region where about 100 people in total have died since mid-June in a series of ambushes and raids.
Al-Shabab claims
Somalia's al-Shabab fighters have claimed responsibility for many of the attacks but the government, including President Uhuru Kenyatta, has suggested local politicians were behind the incidents.
Critics say the comments by Kenyatta, an ethnic Kikuyu, were political point-scoring against Raila Odinga, a Luo who lost to Kenyatta in last year's election but has been whipping up crowds with anti-government rallies.
The leaflets distributed at Likoni, warning Odinga and his community, could further fan an already tense political atmosphere in Kenya.
"This is a revenge for our brothers who were killed in Mpeketoni and you Luos, you won't stay in peace, and you Raila if you have anything to do, just do, we are not fearing you at all," said one of the leaflets seen by Reuters news agency.
A disputed poll in 2007 sparked weeks of ethnic bloodletting that left more than 1,200 people dead and crippled the economy.
Source:Agencies