Death toll in Kenya university attack rises

Members of Kenya's Defence Forces secure the area of the Garissa University college, in Garissa, Kenya. Witnesses say the gunmen who stormed a college in Kenya identified themselves as members of al-Shabaab, the Islamic extremist group from neighboring Somalia. AP Photo/Khalil Senosi

Members of Kenya's Defence Forces secure the area of the Garissa University college, in Garissa, Kenya. Witnesses say the gunmen who stormed a college in Kenya identified themselves as members of al-Shabaab, the Islamic extremist group from neighboring Somalia. AP Photo/Khalil Senosi

Published Apr 2, 2015

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Garissa, Kenya - The death toll in a university attack in northeastern Kenya rose to at least 70 on Thursday, with another 79 wounded, but the siege was almost over, Kenya's Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery said.

Nkaissery told reporters in Garissa that about 500 out of 815 students were accounted for, while four al-Shabaab fighters were killed and 90 percent of the threat eliminated. However, he cautioned that “the operation is ongoing, anything can happen.”

At the same press conference in Garissa, Kenyan police chief Joseph Boinet said the east African country has introduced a dusk to dawn (6.30pm - 6.30am) curfew for four regions near Somalia border as a security precaution.

Reuters

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