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December 2, 2008 7:28:15 AM CST



Kenya Unrest track this thread

Started by K Schwartz; Last updated by D Lim | View history

Kenya Unrest

The country's president is ready for talks with the oppostion..."once the nation is calm"

Will Kenya continue to spiral toward ethnic war in the post-election unrest? President Mwai Kibaki appealed for calm but opposition leader Raila Odinga remains combative, accusing Kibaki allies of "genocide."

Stories

Stories 1 - 20 of 56

  • April 2008
    • Kenya Announces Shared Cabinet

      Kenya Announces Shared Cabinet

      (Newser) - Calling for Kenyans to "put politics aside and get to work," president Mwai Kibaki named chief opposition leader Raila Odinga prime minister today in a move to end political strife with a power-sharing cabinet. The 40-member cabinet, including two deputy PMs, was divided evenly between the two parties, though the BBC notes that key positions remained with Kibaki loyalists. More »

    • Deal Reached in Kenyan Crisis

      Deal Reached in Kenyan Crisis

      (Newser) - Kenya’s election crisis may finally be over. President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga today reached a deal on a new cabinet, the BBC reports, ending the dispute that has long delayed a February power-sharing deal. The new cabinet will be announced tomorrow and should be in place before the parliament returns on Tuesday. More »

    • Riots Flare as Kenya Talks Stall

      Riots Flare as Kenya Talks Stall

      (Newser) - Riots erupted again in Kenya yesterday as opposition leaders suspended talks with the government over a stalled power-sharing pact, reports the New York Times . Dozens of men in a Nairobi slum lit bonfires and hurled rocks at police, chanting, "No cabinet, no peace!" The violence marked the first major riot since February, when Kenya's president and his main rival agreed to form a government together. More »

  • March 2008
    • Tough Work Awaits Kenya Lawmakers

      Tough Work Awaits Kenya Lawmakers

      (Newser) - Kenya's parliament reconvened today, the New York Times reports, and was immediately given the task of putting into law the power-sharing deal that ended the startling wave of violence that followed December's disputed election. "You must now become the ambassadors of peace and reconciliation,” President Mwai Kibaki told legislators. “Please forget the history of what has happened." More »

    • Kenya Gov't Linked to Militia

      Kenya Gov't Linked to Militia

      (Newser) - Kenya's government might have played a direct role in sanctioning recent ethnic violence. A source tells the BBC that senior officials met with the violent Mungiki militia, with the aim of recruiting the outlawed group as a "defense force" to help protect the ethnic Kikuyu population. In January, Mungiki thugs allegedly used machetes to attack non-Kikuyu in the Rift Valley. More »

    • Poisoned Arrows Riddle Kenya

      Poisoned Arrows Riddle Kenya

      (Newser) - Kenya has struck a peace agreement, but its people are still stockpiling a new weapon of choice: poisoned arrows. A primitive arms industry is supplying ethnic warriors with the projectiles to replace their time-tested machetes, Time reports. “This is obviously something very wrong and very new,” said one former police commander. More »

  • February 2008
    • Kenyan Rivals Sign Peace Deal

      Kenyan Rivals Sign Peace Deal

      (Newser) - Kenya’s rival political leaders signed a power-sharing deal today in a ceremony that brought jubilant crowds to the streets of Nairobi, the New York Times reports—a change from the violence that followed December's disputed election. The agreement creates a powerful prime minister position for opposition leader Raila Odinga, with cabinet positions filled by the parties of both Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki. More »

    • Kenyan Leaders Reach Deal

      Kenyan Leaders Reach Deal

      (Newser) -  Kenya’s feuding leaders have finally reached a power sharing deal, Kofi Annan announced today after a four-hour meeting. Annan said he could not yet release details, but the deal is expected to spell out duties for the prime minister position to be created for opposition leader Raila Odinga, the BBC reports. Though the violence that swept Kenya after the election has waned, tensions remain high. More »

    • Annan Suspends Kenya Talks

      Annan Suspends Kenya Talks

      (Newser) - Mediator Kofi Annan is suspending the talks to end the bloody crisis in Kenya. In lieu of the negotiations, the ex-UN Secretary General says he will speak personally to rival leaders Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga, reports the AP. "I hope people will understand this is a move intended to speed up action," Annan said. More »

    • Kenya Stalemate Frustrates Negotiators

      Kenya Stalemate Frustrates Negotiators

      (Newser) - Kenya's peace talks have ground to a standstill and the task of coaxing the country's two rival parties into an agreement is beginning to try even the patience of former UN secretary-general and lead negotiator Kofi Annan, reports the BBC. The two sides cannot agree on a power-sharing deal and aides say an increasingly exasperated Annan is beginning to feel like a "prisoner of peace." More »

    • Kenya Agrees to Create PM Post

      Kenya Agrees to Create PM Post

      (Newser) - Kenya’s government agreed today to create a prime minister position for opposition leader  Raila Odinga—the narrow loser in a disputed election for president in December—in an effort to prevent a new round of violence from tearing the African nation apart. The details are still being hashed out, but a government negotiator promised the position would have real power. “We will not give anybody a hollow shell.” More »

    • Kenya Airways Halts Flights from Paris

      Kenya Airways Halts Flights from Paris

      (Newser) - Plummeting tourism in the wake of January's post-election violence and France's sweeping advisory against travel to Kenya have emptied airline seats, triggering the cancellation of all Kenya Airways flights from Paris to Nairobi. The cancellation, which begins Feb. 26, will disrupt travel to other African destinations, including Congo and Rwanda. More »

    • Bush Praises African Success

      Bush Praises African Success

      (Newser) - President Bush is keeping things positive on his five-country African tour, focusing attention on “success stories.” But at the same time, he says, his efforts are addressing conflicts ravaging the continent.  “When you herald success, it helps others realize what is possible,” he said during a stopover in Benin. And though he won’t visit the troubled Kenya, Condoleezza Rice will on Monday, the AP reports. More »

    • Kenyan Rivals Make Deal for Election Review

      Kenyan Rivals Make Deal for Election Review

      (Newser) - Kenya’s president and opposition leader today unveiled an agreement to examine the hotly contested Dec. 27 election, but the sides have made no progress on a deal to share power, the AP reports. "There is real momentum," said mediator and ex-UN chief Kofi Annan. The deal also calls for the drafting of a new constitution within a year. More »

    • Kenya Talks Make Progress; Caution Urged

      Kenya Talks Make Progress; Caution Urged

      (Newser) - Talks between the Kenyan president and the leader of the opposition are going well, and the parties have agreed in principle to a power-sharing agreement, Reuters reports. "We are making progress. Indications are that we can see some light at the end of the tunnel. We are very optimistic," an MP said of negotiations between Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga. More »