Kenya’s new president, Uhuru Kenyatta, who faces international charges of crimes against humanity, has been sworn in to office at a ceremony in a stadium packed with supporters and foreign dignitaries.

Kenyatta took the oath on Tuesday on a bible used by his father, Kenya’s first president, and was watched by tens of thousands of Kenyans, almost a dozen African leaders and other officials.

“I do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to the Republic of Kenya,” Kenyatta said, clutching a bible as he took the oath of office.

Many Kenyans hope that the son of the nation’s independence hero will live up to his pledge to be a leader for all and not just work for people from his own ethnic group, a practice they have come to expect from their politicians.

For Western states, big donors to east Africa’s biggest economy, Kenya is a vital player in the regional battle against ultraconservative Islam.

But they now have to juggle their wish for close ties with a policy of limiting contacts with those indicted by the ICC in The Hague.

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