A cult leader in Kenya, Paul Nthenge Mackenzie, has been charged with murder of 191 children, after more than 400 bodies were found buried in shallow graves in a remote forest in the east of the country.

Accused of running a doomsday cult, Survivors and victims’ families have said Paul Mackenzie urged followers to fast in order to “go see Jesus”.

He and 29 others pleaded not guilty in a court in the coastal town of Malindi.

Mackenzie has already been charged with committing acts of terror, child cruelty and torture, which he denied. His trial begins on March 7.