Thursday June 26, 2025
By Idorenyin UMOREN
With Agency reports
Several protesters were killed and at least 400 others were wounded on Wednesday when antigovernment protests in the capital, Nairobi turned deadly.
Kenyan officials have not disclosed the number of casualties. Reports from media and rights groups varied, placing the number of dead between 20 and 24.
This is the latest outbreak of violence in the East African country where young demonstrators have frequently taken to the streets in recent months to protest myriad issues including police brutality, government corruption and high taxes.
The demonstrations on Wednesday were held to mark the bloody June 25, 2024, protests against tax rises when police opened fire on large numbers of protesters, killing at least 60, according to rights groups.
What happened during the protests?
Thousands took to the streets in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisii and several other major Kenyan cities in the early hours of Wednesday to mark the anniversary of the violent 2024 anti-tax protests, particularly the killing of 60 protesters, on June 25 last year, Al-Jazeera reported.
Bearing Kenyan flags, the protesters chanted slogans like “Ruto Must Go” and “Occupy Statehouse” in opposition to President William Ruto’s government and referring to his official residence.
Banks and schools in Nairobi’s central business district were shut in anticipation of the protests, and police had cordoned off the State House, as well as the parliament building, with layers of barbed wire. Last year, protesters broke into the parliament block, chasing out politicians and setting parts of the building on fire.
Wednesday’s march was largely peaceful at first – and much smaller compared with last year’s protests. Scenes in Nairobi, however, turned violent later on, after “goons” or men believed to be undercover security officials and armed with whips and clubs attacked the protesters. Police also used live fire, rubber bullets, water cannon and tear gas to disperse the demonstrators.
Shops and businesses in central Nairobi were also attacked, looted and burned by unidentified groups among the demonstrators. Some protesters also burned security barricades in the city and physically attacked suspected plain-clothed officers.
According to Al-Jazeera, in Kikuyu town, about 20km (12.5 miles) from Nairobi, protesters stormed and torched local government buildings, including a police station and courtroom. Some were arrested by the police but have not been identified. In other cities, including Mombasa, marches remained peaceful.
Clashes were also reported in the towns of Matuu and Mlolongo in the eastern Machakos County, approximately 100km (62 miles) from the capital. Violence was also reported in Karatina, Nyeri County.
However, Irungu Houghton, the head of Amnesty Kenya, told Reuters that 16 people had died, adding that this figure had been verified by the global rights watchdog and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR).
Security guard Fred Wamale Wanyonyi, who was on duty guarding a mall in central Nairobi, was one of those confirmed killed, according to rights groups.
Protesters had gathered to mark the anniversary of last year’s anti-tax protests, in which some 60 people were killed by police, although no officials have been punished.
Activists said it was important for Kenyans to remember the bloody protests of 2024.
“It is extremely important that the young people mark June 25th because they lost people who look like them, who speak like them … who are fighting for good governance,” Angel Mbuthia, chair of the youth league for the opposition Jubilee Party, told the AFP news agency.
