Police officers killed & attack in Kenya as voters Vote in a tense presidential election.

Violence has broken out in Kenya's coastal region as polls opened in an election billed as the country's most important in 50 years.
At least five police officers were killed in a pre-dawn attack in Mombasa by a group of 200 secessionists armed with guns, machetes, bows and arrows, Inspector General David Kimaiyo said.
The ambush appears to have been launched by the Mombasa Revolutionary Council, a separatist group that previously threatened to boycott the polls and stands accused of orchestrating sporadic attacks against police officers in the past.

A second assault by the MRC in nearby Kilifi killed one police officer and five attackers, Mr Kimaiyo said.

The leader of the MRC, Omar Mwamnuadzi, has denied responsibility.

The Reuters agency said the death toll from the two offensives was at least 15 - nine security officers and six attackers.

The country's top two presidential candidates have condemned the violence.
Prime Minister Raila Odinga called it a "heinous act of aggression", while deputy prime minister Uhuru Kenyatta said he was discouraged by the news but he was sure the security situation would be brought under control.
Controversy surrounding the candidacy of Mr Kenyatta - wanted by the international criminal court for crimes against humanity stemming from his alleged role in country's bloody poll in 2007 and 2008 - has at times overshadowed this election campaign.

In their final political rallies on Saturday, Mr Kenyatta and his main rival for the presidency, Mr Odinga, both called for peace and said they would accept the results of Monday's election.

In another violent incident in the northern town of Garissa, close to the Somali border, a Red Cross paramedic and his driver were killed.

Officials said a parliamentary candidate had been the target but was not hit.

The Secretary General of the Red Cross, Abbas Guellet, told Sky News that the attack bore the hallmarks of being carried out by al Shabaab sympathisers but there has not yet been confirmation of who was responsible

Both regions are considered hotspots for election-related violence.

Voting in Nairobi, the nation's capital, has so far been peaceful.

(Raila Odinga is Kenya's prime minister)
But police cautioned on Sunday that attacks were being planned in Nairobi and in the western city of Kisumu.
In a news conference on Sunday, police spokesman Charles Owino said gangs were planning to impersonate police officers in order to intimidate voters in Nairobi's informal settlements.

"Any person harassing you is not a policeman, he is a criminal," Mr Owino warned voters.

He insisted that the Kenya Police Service had "provided an enabling environment" for peaceful elections. Some 99,000 police officers have been dispatched across the nation to ensure security at the polls.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission chair, Isaac Hassan, also said that he expected polling to go smoothly. Kenya has implemented a number of reforms since the last vote, including a new progressive constitution.

Thousands of voters arrived as early as 2am to claim their place in line. But long lines around the country left voters frustrated.

Anti-fraud fingerprint voter ID technology that is being used for the first time appeared to be greatly slowing the process. The technology broke down in many locations. 
A peaceful election could cement Kenya's position as a growing regional economic and political powerhouse.

Violence during an election five years ago claimed more than 1,100 lives, and hundreds of thousands of others were displaced.