A wounded woman is taken away from the Kibera slum during protests in Nairobi, yesterday. Police battled protesters in blazing slums yesterday as President Mwai Kibaki began a second term after a disputed vote that has convulsed Kenya, hurt its democratic credentials, and brought a rising death toll. - Reuters

NAIROBI (Reuters):

Kenyan police battled protesters in blazing slums yesterday after disputed elections returned President Mwai Kibaki to power and triggered turmoil thought to have killed more than 100 people.

Riots convulsed pockets of the nation, from the opposition's western heartland near the border with Uganda - where at least 300 Kenyans fled - to Nairobi's shanty-towns and the resort of Mombasa on the Indian Ocean coast.

Reuters reporters estimated about 100 deaths, based on witnesses, body counts and credible media reports. Local broadcaster KTN said the toll had reached at least 124.

The violence threatened to deter investment in east Africa's biggest economy and damage Kenya's reputation as an oasis of relative stability in a turbulent region.

A growing chorus of Kenyan and international voices - including members of the country's electoral commission - expressed concern about the accuracy of the vote tallying, which both sides accused the other of rigging.

The Commission of the African Union said it was "seriously preoccupied" by the events, while France and former colonial ruler Britain warned their citizens against visiting Kenya.

Kibaki urged reconciliation in a New Year message, trying to defuse one of the most volatile moments in Kenya since 1963 independence. But he had a stern warning for troublemakers.

"My government will ... deal decisively with those who breach the peace by intensifying security across the country."

BULLET WOUNDS

Much of the fighting saw angry Luos, who support defeated opposition leader Raila Odinga, targeting Kibaki's ethnic Kikuyu group, Kenya's largest and most economically dominant tribe.

In Kisumu, a pro-opposition western town, 21 bodies lay at a mortuary, witnesses said. Most had gunshot wounds. Some reporters were ordered to leave the premises by a man who said he was a government employee.

Kisumu has seen the worst unrest. A senior security official said the mayhem only eased after police began shooting looters.

Water, food and fuel were in short supply in many parts of the country, with insecurity paralysing transport and business. Some people took refuge in police stations in fear.