NAIROBI , Kenya ( CNN ) -- A high-level Kenyan delegation has agreed with the International Criminal Court to set up a tribunal by July 2010 to prosecute those who instigated last year 's devastating post-election violence . Residents of a Nairobi slum shout during clashes between two rival groups in January 2008 . Failing that , the government in Kenya will refer the case to the court 's prosecutor to take over . The delegation , in a signed agreement with chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo , also agreed to provide the court with a report on the current status of investigations and prosecutions so it can carry out `` preliminary examinations '' of the case . The violence that erupted in Kenya following a disputed election in December 2007 nearly tore apart an African country once considered an island of peace in an otherwise troubled region that includes Somalia . Nearly 1,500 people were killed and hundreds of thousands displaced after the re-election of Mwai Kibaki . The opposition , led by Raila Odinga , and many independent observers , said the vote had been rigged . Under pressure from abroad and the region , former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan helped hammer out an agreement that led to a coalition government of all major political parties . A key part of the deal was the forming of a tribunal to investigate and prosecute the leaders responsible for the violence . Annan promised to hand over a list of suspects to the court , should the Kenyan government not form a tribunal . He gave August as a deadline . The court 's agreement with Kenya now gives the government breathing room . A U.N. special investigator , in a report issued in June , called for the resignation of top Kenyan officials and sweeping changes in the country 's security forces to end reported unlawful killings by police nationwide . The report called for the resignation of Kenya 's attorney general and the immediate replacement of the police commissioner . It also said Kibaki should publicly acknowledge his commitment to ending unlawful killings by police . The Kenya government expressed its `` deep displeasure '' and `` grave concern '' with the report , saying it impinged on the country 's sovereignty . The U.N. investigator also advocated creating an independent civilian police oversight body , and said the International Criminal Court should investigate violence after the 2007 election . He urged the government to create a witness protection program as well . Many analysts who follow Kenya think the next general election in 2012 has a significant chance of descending into violence , should key government reforms not be put in place .
Violence after last year 's elections nearly tore Nairobi apart . hundreds of thousands people were killed and Nearly 1,500 displaced . the International Criminal Court was part of deal to end ethnic violence .