Kenyan police clash with opposition head's supporters

By Andrew Wasike and Magdalene Mukami

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Police on Friday clashed with thousands of supporters who had gathered in the capital Nairobi to welcome opposition leader Raila Odinga -- back from a 10-day trip to the U.S.

The Jomo Kenyatta International Airport remained under heavy security as police dispersed protesters using water cannons and tear gas shells.

Angry mobs could be seen hurling stones at motorists plying the busy Mombasa Road highway which leads to the airport.

Two vehicles including a trailer were set ablaze by rowdy youths at the Jogoo Road highway, also leading to the airport.

An opposition supporter at the scene told Anadolu Agency: “We burnt these vehicles to block the road so that our leader Raila Odinga will not get stuck in traffic once he landed.

“We also set them ablaze because they [the authorities] denied us entry into the airport.”

This was just the beginning of a tough day for the Kenyan police, which proved to be no match for Odinga's faithfuls.

Speaking from his office in Capital Hill, Odinga said: “Today is the day we are launching Kenya as a third republic. What you have seen is a signal that a third liberation is coming soon.”

Police blocked all the roads leading to the Central Business District, the capital's commercial heartland, firing teargas canisters and live rounds at thousands who had formed a protective barrier around their leader.

Protesters looted teargas canisters among other things from a police truck which had stalled, before setting it ablaze.

An Anadolu Agency reporter saw three people who had been shot dead in Muthurwa area, a busy marketplace.

Police in Kenya had released a statement warning that the international airport was on lockdown and no one would be allowed near the airport apart from travelers.

The political crisis in Kenya has affected its economy with many investors opting to move to other countries.

Kenya's top court will on Monday rule on petitions filed to annul President Uhuru Kenyatta's Oct. 26 presidential win, which Odinga boycotted, leaving him to run almost unopposed.