Man shot by Kenyan police during protests in intensive care, says father
A man shot at point blank range by a Kenyan police officer during protests in the capital Nairobi against extrajudicial killings by security forces is alive but in intensive care, his father said on Wednesday.
Protests broke out in Nairobi and Kenya's second-largest city, Mombasa, on Tuesday over the death of blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang in police custody on June 8.
A video posted on Kenyan broadcaster Citizen Television's X account on Tuesday showed two policemen repeatedly striking a man - subsequently identified as Boniface Kariuki - on the head before one of them fired at him with a long-barrelled gun as he tried to walk away.
Police said late on Tuesday an officer had been arrested in connection with the shooting.
On Wednesday, the victim's father Jonah Kariuki said the 22-year-old was in the intensive care unit at the government-funded Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi.
"He is on machine support," Kariuki said in a video posted on X by The Standard newspaper. "I have seen he has a heartbeat ... I have some hope."
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The South African
2 days ago
- The South African
Nation in flames: What sparked Kenya's deadly protests?
The death of blogger Albert Omondi Ojwang in police custody on 8 June ignited flames of nationwide protests on 25 June. A video claimed that Deputy Inspector-General of Police Eliud Lagat was planning an extortion syndicate, which led to Ojwang's concern. In contrast to the initial police claim that he committed suicide, his body showed signs of severe torture. Police claims that Ojwang had fatally struck his skull against a wall were refuted by government pathologist Dr Bernard Midia, who flatly denied the possibility of self-harm. The autopsy revealed significant soft tissue lesions, cervical compression, and blunt force damage to the skull, all of which were consistent with an attack rather than self-harm. Before becoming well-known as a digital activist on TikTok and X, 31-year-old Albert Omondi Ojwang taught Kiswahili and religious studies at Moi Boys High School in Voi, Taita Taveta County, southern Kenya. He regularly published tapes detailing alleged illegal arrests and bribery by traffic cops. On 6 June 2025, he identified high-ranking officials involved in 'mafia-style' police corruption in a livestream. Ojwang openly accused Officer James Mukhwana, Officer Commanding Station Samson Talaam, and Deputy Inspector-General Eliud Lagat of running a police extortion ring. Later that night, authorities took him into custody without a warrant or public explanation. Social media platforms, particularly TikTok and X (formerly Twitter), helped #JusticeForOjwang garner national attention and intensify the protests. As of 26 June, Amnesty International (AI) Kenya reported that gunshot wounds had caused hundreds of injuries and 16 fatalities. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), using eyewitness reports, mortuary statistics, and hospital records, confirmed it. Many stores, particularly in Nairobi and Mombasa, suffered looting, raging flames, or vandalism during rallies. Traders also reported property damages amounting to millions of Kenyan shillings. According to Reuters, at least ten buildings in Nairobi's central business district were on fire. Officer Commanding Station (OCS) Samson Talaam, along with two additional police officers and three individuals, faced charges of murder. Consequently, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Renson M. Ingonga indicted them in connection with Ojwang's death on 23 June 2025. Furthermore, the interior cabinet secretary, Kipchumba Murkomen, called the protesters 'terrorism disguised as dissent'. Many Western embassies and the United Nations (UN) expressed deep concern over the deaths. They urged the Kenyan government to ensure accountability and protect human rights amid the crisis. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 11. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news
Daily Maverick
2 days ago
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Kenya's President Ruto faces major challenge as nation's young people risk death for a better life
An analyst said high unemployment, the disproportionate and violent police response to protests, and the abductions and disappearances of government critics were radicalising young Kenyans. Kenya is caught in a spiral of violence in which protests against corruption, misgovernance and police brutality spark further police brutality and these, in turn, inspire further protests. Underlying this feedback loop is a deep and abiding malaise felt mainly by young people over their deteriorating living conditions and prospects. Wednesday's demonstrations, in which at least 16 people died in the capital, Nairobi, and elsewhere in the country, were held mainly to commemorate the violent suppression of anti-tax protests a year ago when about 60 people were killed. Those protests peaked on 25 June 2024 when protesters stormed the parliament while MPs inside passed legislation to raise taxes. This week's anniversary marches started peacefully but then turned violent with protesters engaging in running battles with the police, who fired tear gas and barricaded government buildings with barbed wire. The demonstrators were also protesting at the death of the teacher Albert Ojwang in police custody this month after he accused on social media the country's deputy police chief, Eliud Lagat, of corruption. Some were also protesting against the police shooting of the vendor Boniface Kariuki at close range during a protest over Ojwang's death. President William Ruto's government ordered TV and radio stations to stop live broadcasts of the protests to try to defuse them. When the TV stations NTV, KTN, K24 and Kameme refused to do so, they were taken off air. 'We face an unfortunate paradox as a country where more lives are being lost as the people seek justice for the lives already lost,' said the Law Society of Kenya's president, Faith Odhiambo, on X. 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On 12 June, police used tear gas to disperse crowds which had gathered near the National Assembly to protest at Ojwang's killing and attempts by the police to cover it up. And abductions and disappearances of government critics continued. Strangled The police initially claimed that Ojwang (31) had died from 'hitting his head against a cell wall', implying that he had committed suicide. But a postmortem showed he had been strangled and beaten to death. On 11 June, Ruto admitted that Ojwang had been killed 'at the hands of the police' and described the killing as 'heartbreaking and unacceptable'. The same day, Inspector-General Douglas Kanja apologised to the National Assembly for saying that Ojwang's injuries had been self-inflicted. That day too, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority chairperson, Ahmed Issack Hassan, told a National Assembly committee that there had been '20 deaths in police custody in the last four months'. 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'Their grievances are legit. They need their country to work, yet Ruto is not doing the bare minimum to make the country work. He keeps shooting himself in the foot with 'reforms' that really ignore country context.' Protesters also felt that Ruto had lied to quell last year's protests with cosmetic reforms, such as firing the Cabinet, yet returning most of the ministers to office; withdrawing the finance Bill; and surreptitiously sneaking the bad proposals into other Bills. The protesters were also not convinced by Ruto's stratagem of bringing his erstwhile political rival, Raila Odinga, into a broad-based government. 'In short, Ruto squandered public trust and the political capital with which he came to power [in 2023] and now he believes using fiat and force, and increased surveillance will manage the country. 'He keeps on applying Band-Aid, while the young people, most of them who have already given up, want him to do the right thing. He threatens to kill them, and they tell him they are ready to be martyred,' said the analyst. DM
The Herald
3 days ago
- The Herald
Eight dead, more than 400 injured as cops suppress Kenya protests
Isolated clashes were reported in the port city of Mombasa, according to NTV, with protests also in the towns of Kitengela, Kisii, Matuu and Nyeri. Though last year's protests faded after President William Ruto withdrew proposed tax hikes, public anger has remained over the use of excessive force by security agencies, with fresh demonstrations this month over the death of a blogger in police custody. Six people, including three police officers, were charged with murder on Tuesday over the killing of 31-year-old blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang. All have pleaded not guilty. Ojwang's death has become a lightning rod for Kenyans still mourning those who perished at last year's demonstrations, blamed on security forces, against a backdrop of dozens of unexplained disappearances. 'We are fighting for the rights of our fellow youths and Kenyans and the people who died since June 25 ... we want justice,' Lumumba Harmony, a protester, told Reuters in Nairobi. The unprecedented scenes on Wednesday, showing police firing at protesters as they broke through barriers to enter parliament, created the biggest crisis of Ruto's presidency and sparked alarm among Kenya's international allies. Reuters
