Kenyan deputy president flies to Hague for ICC trial

Kenyan Vice President William Ruto, wearing a cap, leaves for The Hague, on Sept. 9, 2013.

Kenyan Vice President William Ruto has left for The Hague, one day ahead of the start of his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity.

Ruto, 46, will face trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Tuesday for masterminding deadly post-election violence in 2007, which left at least 1,100 people dead and more than 600,000 homeless.

President Uhuru Kenyatta also stands accused of crimes against humanity for his part in the violence after the election. He will remain in Kenya until his trial in November.

Joshua arap Sang, a radio boss who allegedly helped coordinate attackers, is already in The Hague after flying there over the weekend.

Ruto shook hands with supporters in Nairobi and waved smiling to a small crowd at the airport as he left, but made no comment.

Kenyatta and Ruto were on opposite sides during the 2007 election, when political riots sparked by vote rigging quickly spiraled into a wave of ethnic killings and reprisal attacks. The two however formed an alliance for this year’s presidential election in March.

Human Rights Watch on Monday called the case the "first real effort" to look at responsibility for the killings.

"For decades those who have turned Kenya's elections into bloodbaths have gotten away with murder," HRW Africa director, Daniel Bekele, said in a statement.

Ratified by 122 countries, including 34 in Africa, the ICC was set up in 2002 to deal with genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression.

PG/SS