Survivor of Kenya university massacre comes out of wardrobe after two days cowering in fear - as horrifying picture of classroom filled with bodies emerges
- Cynthia Cheroitich hid in a wardrobe as gunmen slaughtered 148 people
- Student, 19, emerged after two days, fearing police officers were gunmen
- Her rescue came as a picture of a blood-stained classroom was revealed
- Bodies of students are seen strewn across the floor of the Kenyan college
Cynthia Cheroitich hid in a wardrobe for two days cowering in fear before finally being rescued from the college in Kenya
A
survivor of the Kenya university massacre hid in a wardrobe for two
days cowering in fear before finally being rescued today, as a
horrifying picture of a classroom strewn with dead bodies emerged.
Cynthia
Cheroitich, 19, was initially too petrified to come out, but a lecturer
she knew eventually convinced her that police officers were not the
al-Shabaab gunmen who slaughtered nearly 150 people at the college.
Her
rescue, 50 hours after the barbaric attack began, came as a photograph
of a blood-stained classroom filled with bodies was revealed.
Ms
Cheroitich, who hid under a pile of clothes, told police officers that
she drank body lotion to survive because she was too terrified to open
the wardrobe doors.
Kenyan troops searching the building were alarmed when they heard sounds coming from inside a wardrobe.
A
police officer said: 'She kept asking for reassurance from the security
forces they were not al-Shabaab before she could come out.
'She was given milk and rushed to the Garissa hospital, where she is being observed before being given counselling.'
Speaking
later in hospital, the survivor said she told officers from inside the
wardrobe: 'How do I know that you are the Kenyan police?'
'I was just praying to my God,' Ms Cheroitich, a Christian, said.
Four other survivors from the massacre at Garissa University College were also found yesterday.
Scroll down for video
A
photograph from inside one of the classrooms at the university emerged
today, showing at least 12 bodies strewn across the floor, which was
covered in blood.
At
least three people appear to have been huddled in fear in the corner of
the room when they were murdered by the militant Islamists.
A survivor of the Kenya university
massacre hid in a wardrobe for two days cowering in fear before finally
being rescued, as a horrifying picture of a classroom strewn with dead
bodies emerged
Cynthia Cheroitich, 19, emerged after
two days of hiding inside wardrobe at the university (pictured), and was
initially too petrified to believe police officers were not al-Shabaab
gunmen
A grieving
relative is overcome with emotion after viewing the body of a family
member - one of the 148 killed in the barbaric attack
Mouring: Today hundreds of grieving relatives were still gathered in grief outside the college, where 148 people were murdered
The
terrorists raided the university early on Thursday morning,
overwhelming guards and murdering people they suspected of being a
Christian.
A total of 148 people were killed in the siege, with the gunmen shooting and beheading those who could not recite the Koran.
Most of those killed were students but two police officers, one soldier and two watchmen are among the dead.
Kenya's
interior minister, Joseph Nkaissery said the four terrorist gunmen had
strapped themselves with explosives. When officers shot at them, they
exploded 'like bombs' and shrapnel injured officers.
A total of 148 people were killed in
the siege, with the gunmen shooting and beheading those who could not
recite the Koran. Pictured: A relative of one of the students who was
murdered weeps
A £145,000 reward has been offered for
information leading to the capture of Mohamed Mohamud, who is believed
to have masterminded the attack
Distraught: Members of the Red Cross help a woman overcome with grief after seeing the body of a relative
Kenyan
security officials said dozens of hostages were freed and four of the
gunmen, believed to be armed with AK-47s, were killed.
Five
people have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the attack,
including three people who were trying to cross into Somalia, where
al-Shabaab is based.
Kenyan
officials said all three were associates of Islamist teacher Mohamed
Mohamud, who authorities say coordinated the attack. There is a £145,000
bounty on his head.
In a chilling warning today, the terrorist group said more attacks like the university massacre were planned.
'Kenyan cities will run red with blood,' al-Shabab said in a statement, according to the SITE intelligence monitoring group.
The
militants said the barbaric attack was in retaliation for killings
carried out by Kenyan troops fighting the rebels in Somalia.
'This will be a long, gruesome war of which you, the Kenyan public, are its first casualties.
'No
amount of precaution or safety measures will be able to guarantee your
safety, thwart another attack or prevent another bloodbath.'
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