Swiss tourist killed in Kenya robbery

Robbers have shot dead a Swiss tourist near a popular resort town in southern Kenya, police said Saturday.

The exact circumstances of his death on Friday were not immediately clear but the Swiss national was killed when criminals opened fire after robbing a shop near Diani, a beach town on the Indian Ocean.

“He was not targeted, the thugs appear to have shot at him while fleeing,” local police chief Jack Ekakoro said. “We have launched an investigation.”

Foreign embassies regularly urge caution to citizens visiting Kenya, where violent crime is common.

Tourism is a key source of foreign currencies for Kenya’s economy and the government has been keen to reassure visitors after last month’s deadly Islamist attack on an upmarket Nairobi mall.