Kenyan Olympic Athletes in Hiding after 15 People Killed, Hundreds Injured in Violence

by Rob Walker | January 25, 2008 at 10:16 am

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Even after agreeing to be prime minister under the opposition leader, violence and protests continued across Kenya, killing at least 15 people and injuring hundreds.

Previous NowPublic Kenya coverage here.

The violence and unrest is affecting everyone, even olympic athletes, who can't train and are hiding in fear.

Dozens of Kenya's best-known athletes, including Olympic hopefuls, are unable to train properly and living in fear for their lives as violence convulses the Rift Valley, home of world distance running, in the wake of last month's disputed elections.

Elite runners told the Guardian they had been forced to cut training programmes for security reasons, after receiving death threats and being accused of fomenting post-election violence.

At least seven people were killed in ethnic fighting in Kenya's Rift Valley overnight which sent tens of thousands of people fleeing and dealt a blow to hopes of ending weeks of unrest.

The violence, and a denial by opposition leader Raila Odinga's that he would agree to serve as prime minister under President Mwai Kibaki, dented hopes that were raised by talks between the two rivals on Thursday.

"Nakuru town has been shut down ... My staff have carried three dead bodies and hundreds are injured in hospital," Kenya Red Cross head Abbas Gullet said.