Kenya Police Ambush Toll Rises to 42

The death toll from a weekend ambush on Kenyan police officers in the north of the country rose to 42 on Monday after more bodies were found, police said.

"We have never lost such a big number of officers," a police source said on condition of anonymity.

"The number of police officers killed is now 42. More bodies were recovered this afternoon," the source added.

"We are undertaking a major security operation on the ground," police spokesman Eric Kiraithe added.

Nine other officers are recovering in hospital from their wounds, Kiraithe said.

Police officers hunting cattle thieves were ambushed by gunmen on Saturday in the remote northern Baragoi district.

The group of rustlers police were pursuing were already suspected of killing 13 people in another raid on October 30.

They set out after the rustlers when a deadline for the return of the cattle expired.

Cattle theft and the ensuing clashes between rival pastoralist groups claim dozens of lives every year in arid northern Kenya. However, it is rare for police officers to be attacked by rustlers.

The violence is not believed to be linked to politics, but it raises concerns over security and a lack of police capacity in volatile areas ahead of elections due to take place in March.