Warden Message 

Situation Security Update - January 25, 2008 PM

• The widespread violence that has affected parts of Kenya, including Nairobi and the cities of Eldoret, Kisumu and Mombasa, since President Kibaki was declared the winner of the December 27 election, has largely subsided. However, isolated incidents of violence, particularly in the western provinces and economically disadvantaged parts of Nairobi, continue to occur.
• On January 24, former UN Secretary Kofi Annan met with President Kibaki and opposition leader Odinga.  Kibaki and Odinga shook hands at the conclusion of the meeting and made public statements that they will seek a peaceful, political solution, asking constituents to be patient and peaceful.  However, the situation is still tense and violence could break out at any time, depending on how each party approaches the negotiations. 
• American citizens should defer non-essential travel to Kenya’s three western provinces -- Nyanza, Western, and Rift Valley -- which are most affected by the unrest. Nakuru (in Rift Valley province) has experienced civil unrest over the past two days.  Road travel in western Kenya remains unsafe. Sporadic illegal road blocks by gangs or criminal elements make travel risky.
• American citizens residing in Kenya should continue to assess their own safety and security situations and carefully weigh the risks of travel within Kenya.
• Most official American citizens, who were outside of Kenya when the violence started and delayed their return to the country, have since returned. The availability of food, fuel, cash and cards to replenish cell phone airtime has improved.
• The roads leading to the airports in Nairobi and Mombasa are open and Kenya’s international airports (Jomo Kenyatta in Nairobi and Moi in Mombasa) are operating normally. Seats are available for international flights out of Kenya. Domestic flights are also operating.
• Americans should avoid nighttime road travel, including the roads to/from JKIA and Wilson airports as these roads are subject to closure by police and/or disruption by demonstrators.
• American citizens in Nairobi should avoid Kibera, and other economically disadvantaged parts of the city, and the Uhuru Park area, venues for most of the political demonstrations and rallies.  Sporadic violence in Nairobi continues.
• For the near future, intermittent (and at times violent) protest demonstrations are likely to continue, arising quickly and without advance notice.  American citizens should avoid all demonstrations and protests since even protests intended to be peaceful can turn violent.
• The situation in Kenya is likely to remain volatile for the immediate future and U.S. citizens should, therefore, check the U.S. Embassy Nairobi website at http://nairobi.usembassy.gov/warden_messages.html for current information about the situation in Kenya.
• Americans living or traveling in Kenya are encouraged to register with the U.S. Embassy through the State Department’s travel registration website. See also the Kenya Travel Alert and Kenya Travel Warning at http://travel.state.gov for the latest security information.
• There have been no reports of injuries to American citizens since the election crisis began.