At least eight people died and around 400 sustained injuries as thousands of Kenyans flooded the streets in massive anti-government protests on Wednesday.
Protesters clashed with police in Nairobi and several other cities, exactly one year after a similar wave of deadly demonstrations rocked the country in 2024.
Chanting “Ruto must go,” demonstrators waved branches in a symbol of peaceful resistance and pushed toward key government sites. Police responded with barricades, razor wire, and tear gas, blocking major roads to State House and Parliament.
Many protesters attempted to reach President William Ruto’s official residence, but security forces repelled the crowds. The president, notably absent from the State House, addressed the unrest from a burial ceremony in Kilifi.
He urged Kenyans to protect national peace and warned that “we do not have another country to go to when things go wrong.”
Despite a government ban on live TV and radio coverage, the High Court in Nairobi overturned the order, allowing media to broadcast the protests.
The Kenya Medical Association, the Law Society of Kenya, and the Police Reforms Working Group confirmed at least eight deaths and reported that 83 people required specialised care. Eight of the injured suffered gunshot wounds, including three police officers.
Human rights group Amnesty Kenya, however, placed the death toll at 16.
In the capital, white clouds of tear gas drifted through the streets as demonstrators scattered for cover. Protesters marched past closed shops and deserted roads, determined to make their voices heard.
Amina Mude, one of the demonstrators, told the BBC she joined the protest for the future of her children. “I feel like the country is going in the wrong direction, especially with education,” she said. “It’s time our leaders listened.”
Outside Parliament, mourners laid wreaths and notes in memory of those killed during last year’s protests. One young woman, wrapped in the Kenyan flag, held a poster listing names of victims—signaling that the memory of past violence still fuels the fight for change.
