ICC prosecutor confirms Kenyan inquiry

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo said Thursday an inquiry would be conducted into alleged crimes against humanity in Kenya.

Moreno-Ocampo said at a news conference in Nairobi, Kenya, he explained to Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga that crimes against humanity took place in post-election violence in Kenya in 2008, The New York Times reported.

"I explained to them that I consider the crimes committed in Kenya were crimes against humanity, therefore the gravity is there. So therefore I should proceed," Moreno-Ocampo said.

More than 1,000 people died in the wake of 2008 Kenyan elections and the widespread violence left hundreds of thousands of people displaced.

Human rights groups have accused senior Kenyan government ministers of orchestrating the post-election violence, but Kibaki and Odinga claim they are committed to aiding the ICC inquiry.

"We don't want see a repeat of what we saw last year," Odinga said.

The Times said the Kenyan violence came after Kibaki retained his presidency, prompting opposition from Odingo. The two politicians formed a unity government in April 2008.