Glimmer of Hope Out of Kenya as Opposition Parties Talk

Negotiators for President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga re-started talks on Monday in a mood of national optimism that a political solution to Kenya's worst crisis since independence may be near.
Mediator and former U.N. chief Kofi Annan has predicted the two sides will agree on a formula this week to overcome their dispute over the December 27 election that triggered violence killing more than 1,000 people and uprooting 300,000.

Kenya's feuding parties on Monday began a crucial week of tough negotiations to clinch a political deal and end a crisis sparked by President Mwai Kibaki's re-election.  
Former UN chief Kofi Annan met with negotiators for Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga in a Nairobi hotel as relative calm returned across the country for the first time in weeks.

The UN Chief Humanitarian Officer, Mr John Holmes, visited displaced persons in Nakuru and Molo and described their situation as tragic.
 
He called for a speedy solution to the political crisis to avert a catastrophe.
 
Holmes, who came face-to-face with victims of the post-election violence at Afraha Stadium, said he was impressed by the assistance from humanitarian organisations and wellwishers.