The 300 women, most of them from the Masai ethnic group, were accompanied by children of mixed race as they gathered near the eastern town of Isiolo.

They say the children were born as the result of the rapes.

The British army has a training base in the region, near Mount Kenya.

The lawyers will also be talking to some 15 boys who also claim that they were raped by the troops between 1980s and 1990s.

Most of the boys come from Nanyuki in the Mkogodo area, and five are from Isiolo.

A BBC reporter in Isiolo says that at this initial stage the women will be interviewed by the lawyers from a London-based solicitors' firm, led by Martyn Day.

Compensation

To authenticate their claims, the women will have to produce letters from their local chiefs confirming their whereabouts at the time of the alleged rapes.

The civil rights lawyer, Martyn Day wants the MoD to accept liability and demands compensation for the women.

The British MoD says that it is investigating the claims.

This is not the first time the MoD has been taken to court by Mr Day.

Last year his firm won a �4.5m (7.5m) settlement for the Masai people killed and injured by mines left on their land by the British Army.