Gang rape a weapon in Kenya violence

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Gang rape has become a weapon in post-election violence that hit Kenya this week, with young boys and girls among the victims.

Doctors at a hospital in a Nairobi suburb told The Daily Telegraph, a London newspaper, they had treated 24 women, 13 girls and three young boys for injuries related to the violence.

"Most of them have been gang-raped, one of them by 10 men," said hospital matron Rahab Ngugi. "We believe we only know about a fraction of cases because most people have no transport to get to hospitals or are still trapped because of the security situation."

Most of the sexual violence has taken place in Nairobi slums, with women attacked in their homes, doctors said.

One British resident of Nairobi told the newspaper she saw what appeared to be a gang rape from her balcony in Kilimani, a rich Nairobi suburb. She said the victim, a woman of about 20, appeared to be a chance target.

"She was begging them in Swahili, saying 'please, please, please' over and over again," the woman said. "They took her behind a wall and I couldn't see what happened but I could hear the screams."