NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov. 16 (UPI) -- Kenyan police have killed hundreds of suspected criminal gang members with the apparent blessing of the government, human rights investigators charge.
A report issued by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights alleges 500 young men have been killed by police or have disappeared in the wake of a promise by President Mwai Kibaki 18 months ago to crack down on the Mungiki, a gang that itself purportedly has committed gruesome slayings, The Sunday Times of London reported.
The commission assembled the names of at least 300 men who have been killed or have disappeared while about 200 additional victims could not be identified. The Times said the report indicated initially most of the victims were shot, but that police then turned to strangulation and bludgeoning to make it appear rival gangs were responsible.
"These acts were ordered, directed or coordinated by the top leadership of the Kenya police acting jointly with a common purpose," the report stated.
