62 Charged in Deadly Raid That Incited Violence in Kenya

A Kenyan court charged 62 suspects Thursday with robbery and violence during a raid on a police station that triggered more than a week of attacks around the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa.

The 62 suspects in Mombasa were accused of robbing Likoni police station Aug. 13, killing a policeman, stealing weapons that included 40 rifles and damaging property.

They were also charged with arson and taking an unlawful oath to kill if called on to do so. The maximum penalty for robbery with violence is death.

The suspects denied the charges and will appear in court again in two weeks.

Security forces beat opposition leader Raila Odinga and damaged his car Thursday when he tried to visit Likoni police station with other opposition activists, Odinga and local journalists said.

Police spokesman Peter Kimanthi said he was unaware of the incident. But he confirmed that police shot and killed a man south of Mombasa on Wednesday, bringing the death toll in the weeklong violence to 40.

More than a dozen people were killed in the Aug. 13 attack just south of Mombasa, triggering assaults focused on Kenyans from outside the coastal area. More than 400 people have been arrested since the attack, Kimanthi said.

Also Thursday, the International Monetary Fund said it was sending a team to Kenya for talks on resuming aid.

The IMF suspended a $205-million three-year loan to Kenya on July 31, citing concerns over corruption. The World Bank followed suit and delayed disbursements.

The move is a boost for President Daniel Arap Moi, 73, who has been in power since 1978. He faces elections later this year, but the date has not been set.