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Kenyan police: 32 officers killed in cattle rustler ambush

Other News Materials 13 November 2012 18:45 (UTC +04:00)
Kenyan police confirmed on Tuesday that 32 officers were killed and seven are missing after they were ambushed while chasing a gang of armed cattle rustlers over the weekend, reported dpa.
Kenyan police: 32 officers killed in cattle rustler ambush

Kenyan police confirmed on Tuesday that 32 officers were killed and seven are missing after they were ambushed while chasing a gang of armed cattle rustlers over the weekend, reported dpa.

Police spokesman Eric Kiraithe said the officers were ambushed by an estimated 300 rustlers who carried assault rifles.

"The intention of the officers was to cover as much distance as possible under the cover of darkness," Kiraithe told dpa. "As they pursued the rustlers, they got themselves into a ravine, on lower ground and in a very vulnerable position."

The rustlers are accused of stealing 1,000 cattle in a remote area of northern Kenya that is known for inter-tribal violence over livestock, grazing land and water.

Bodies of the 25 serving officers and seven reserves have been flown to Wilson Airport, in the capital Nairobi. The search continued in the bush around the ambush site for the seven missing policemen.

A dozen civilians were killed in the initial cattle raid last week.

Kenyans have described this as the worst attack in the history of the police since independence from Britain in 1963.

In March, the nation goes to the polls in a bitterly contested presidential race. The last election in 2007 resulted in ethnic violence that killed about 1,000 people.

"We want to assure the country that it is a one-off, not a situation that is likely to occur in the future," Police Commissioner Mathew Iteere told journalists.

"Every possible measure is being taken to ensure that the ones who perpetrated those acts will be apprehended and dealt with severely," Iteere said.

George Morara, a researcher from the Kenya Human Rights Commission said the attack was "a matter of national concern and a threat to our national security."

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