What began as a peaceful anniversary protest erupted into deadly mayhem in Kenya, leaving at least 16 people dead, hundreds wounded and entire business districts in ashes – as the government branded the unrest “terrorism disguised as dissent.”
The United Nations said Thursday it was “deeply concerned” by the violence during Wednesday’s protests, which descended into chaos as demonstrators clashed with police, hurled rocks torn from city pavements and set businesses ablaze.
The demonstrations, called to mark a year since anti-tax rallies turned deadly, spiraled into Kenya’s worst street violence in years.
“We are concerned by reports that some protesters had gunshot wounds,” said Elizabeth Throssell, spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office. “Lethal force by law enforcement must only be used when strictly necessary.”
Kenya’s Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen called the unrest an “attempted coup,” denouncing it as “criminal anarchy” masked as peaceful protest.
“What unfolded yesterday was not a protest. It was terrorism disguised as dissent,” he said in a televised address, accusing demonstrators of looting, sexual assault, and destruction.
In the capital’s business district, shops smoldered, banks were broken into and malls ransacked.
Print shop owner Raphael Omondi estimated he lost $150,000 worth of equipment. “There were guys stealing, and after stealing, they set the whole premises on fire,” he said. “If this is what protest is, it is not worth it.”
Perfume shop owner Maureen Chepkemoi wept over her shattered store: “To protest is not bad, but why are you coming to protest inside my shop? It is wicked.”
Several business owners claimed looting escalated after authorities ordered broadcasters to cut live coverage of the protests.
Rights groups said at least 16 people were killed and more than 400 wounded across 23 counties, including 83 in critical condition. Vocal Africa, a local rights group, confirmed that four of the bodies brought to a Nairobi morgue bore gunshot wounds.
“You come out to protest police killings, and they kill even more,” said Hussein Khalid, the group’s director.
At the morgue, Winifred Mwangi collapsed in grief as she tried to speak about her husband, one of the victims. “He was my everything,” she sobbed. The father of her two daughters had been shot dead.
The U.N. and Amnesty International urged calm, restraint and accountability. Kenya’s Independent Policing Oversight Authority pledged investigations.
“The rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression must be respected and upheld,” Throssell said.
President William Ruto, elected in 2022 on promises of economic revival, now faces mounting fury over rising taxes, rampant corruption and alleged police brutality, inflamed further by the recent death of a teacher in custody.
