Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has confirmed he will be appearing at the International Criminal Court in The Hague this week.

He told parliament that his deputy, William Ruto, would be in charge during his absence.

Mr Kenyatta faces charges of organising ethnic massacres that killed 1,200 people after the 2007 elections - something he denies.

The 8 October hearing is due to set a date for his trial to commence.

The ICC had summoned him to appear to explain allegations that evidence against him had been withheld.

In September, the court postponed the trial after prosecutors said the Kenyan government had failed to deliver key documents. Witnesses for the prosecution have withdrawn from the case.

Dozens of Kenyan MPs are expected to travel to The Hague to back Mr Kenyatta at the status hearing.

Mr Kenyatta said he would be going to the Hague in a personal capacity - not as president - so as not to compromise the sovereignty of Kenya's 40 million people.

"To protect the sovereignty of the Kenyan republic I now take the extraordinary and unprecedented step of evoking article 1473 of the constitution and I will shortly issue the legal notice necessary to appoint honourable William Ruto, the deputy president, as acting president while I attend the status conference at the Hague in the Netherlands," he said.

There had been growing doubts as to whether Mr Kenyatta would become the first sitting president to attend the court.