Midday updates from around Kenya

Some friends around the country are sending in updates to 8 Months.

With some sensitivity to the tribal lines that are currently dividing the country, here are some reports of the situation right now...

Most importantly, the opposition has apparently postponed their rally until next Tuesday. Local radio is reporting that Raila has agreed to meet with Kibaki later today.

Amos in Eldoret says, although downtown was quiet this morning, there are now truckloads of young men moving into the city center. Earlier this morning, groups of people who had been sheltering at the police station were being loaded onto police and army trucks. Amos says not all of those people have yet left town. He says the General Service Unit and the police seem to be doing little to stop the convoys of young men from going into town.

In Kibera, Felix says the slums are on fire. He was almost in tears on the phone, saying he had never expected to see that kind of violence in Kenya. He says the General Service Unit seemed not to be acting to stop any of the opposition supporters from looting, burning and beating people.

Friends of friends report that Kisumu, Kakamega and other communities in Nyanza are in the worst state. George says the outskirts of Kisumu are still quiet, though the tension is high and people are without food or credit for their phones. National radio reports that people are rioting, trying to get into downtown Kisumu.

In coast province, Paul says that people are demonstrating on the roads, in protest of the denied rally in Nairobi. This morning, downtown Mombasa was quiet. There were many closed shops and long queues where shops were open. He says markets owned by members of Kibaki's tribe have been looted and torn down in the slums neighboring his home. Apparently, members of the large East Indian community on the coast are evacuating to Nairobi and Tanzania.

The press reports from elsewhere in Nairobi are of skirmishes across the city between police and protesters, as people try to find their way around the security perimeter. Petrol stations in Kilimani, on Thika Road and other parts of town are on fire.

For more blog news and commentary, check out:

http://whiteafrican.com/?p=841