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Mombasa riots after Muslim cleric assassinated on road in re-enactment of previous assassination
Four people have been killed in Kenya's port of Mombasa during clashes between police and those angered at the killing of a Muslim cleric, the Red Cross says.Seven people have also been wounded during the disturbances, while a church was set alight. The cleric Ibrahim "Rogo" Omar and three other people were shot dead in Mombasa as they drove home on Thursday night after preaching. It comes two weeks after the deadly attack on a Nairobi shopping centre. Somali Islamist group al-Shabab, which is part of al-Qaeda, said its militants stormed the Westgate mall in the capital in retaliation for Kenya's military involvement in Somalia. Mr. Omar's killing is similar to that of Aboud Rogo Mohammed last year, which was followed by similar rioting in Mombasa. The car in which Mr. Omar was shot then smashed into the verge off the main coastal road north of Mombasa, not far from where Mr. Rogo was shot dead in his vehicle in August 2012. Mr. Rogo was alleged to have links with al-Shabab and some Muslims accused the Kenyan security forces of killing him - an allegation they denied. "That's not how we operate," Reuters news agency quoted Robert Kitur, Mombasa County police commander, as saying. The trouble began after Friday prayers when protesters began stoning cars and lighting bonfires as they clashed with police. At least one of those who died of their wounds in hospital had been shot, according to the Kenya Red Cross. Kenya's national crisis centre said three people had died of stab wounds, the AFP news agency reports. Police said they used tear gas to disperse the protesters who also set fire to a Salvation Army church in the Majengo district, a middle-class area of the city, which has a large Muslim population. Local imams reportedly called for calm. Eyewitnesses said police were also firing in the air to try to disperse the demonstrators. A BBC journalist heard sounds of gunshots being fired while on the phone to a local reporter. Mombasa city police chief Kipkemoi Rop said 24 people had been detained, as the force would not tolerate "unruly youth taking over the town", AFP reports. Correspondents say the Masjid Musa Mosque, which is on the same street as the Salvation Army church, is known to attract some radical followers. Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2013-10-05 |
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