ARUSHA, Tanzania, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Tanzanian police killed 14 men suspected of planning to rob a bank in a gun battle at a roadblock near the northern town of Moshi, the local commander said on Friday.

The men, 11 of them from neighbouring Kenya, were carrying grenades, assault rifles and bullet-proof vests when they were stopped late on Wednesday near the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro.

"They came across us and fighting ensued," police chief Lucas Ng'hoboko said, adding that officers got a tip-off the men were going to rob a bank in Moshi. "They were ready for war."

Tanzania has less gun crime than Kenya, but authorities are acutely aware of its potential effect on tourism in the area, which is famed for its game parks and for Africa's highest peak.

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