Kenya death toll 'nears 1,000'

Almost 1,000 people have been killed in recent violence triggered by disputed elections, Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has said.

The east African country is reeling from over a week of turmoil following the disputed December 27 re-election of President Mwai Kibaki - whose government puts the official death toll at 486.

African Union mediation talks could begin on Wednesday, Mr Odinga said, as AU chairman John Kufuor, the president of Ghana, is due in the country the previous night.

Mr Odinga earlier held talks with US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Jendayi Frazer.

He said Mr Kufuor "confirmed to me that he has now received an invitation from (President Mwai) Kibaki to come and chair mediation talks."

This was a "major, major breakthrough" and a "very significant move," he said.

The violence has sparked one of Kenya's worst crises since its 1963 independence from Britain and has left hundreds of thousands of people homeless.

Eleven UN trucks are heading to western Kenya, the heart of the refugee crisis, under police escort, with enough food to feed 38,000 people for two weeks

Mr Odinga had looked on course to win the election until Mr Kibaki, 76, was handed a narrow victory.

Both sides alleged massive rigging and international observers say the poll fell short of democratic standards.

Meanwhile, travel companies are set to announce whether suspensions of holiday flights to strife-torn Kenya will continue.

The Foreign Office is still advising against all but essential travel to the country.

Around 500 UK tourists are expected to fly home at the scheduled conclusion of their breaks in the country, leaving about 2,000 Britons in the east African state.

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