The mainly youth-led rallies, which began last week, have caught President William Ruto’s government off guard, with Ruto saying over the weekend he was ready to talk to the protesters.
But tensions sharply escalated on Tuesday afternoon, as crowds began to throw stones at police and push back against barricades, making their way towards the parliament complex, which was sealed off by police in full riot gear.
Police fired at crowds massing outside the parliament building, where lawmakers had been debating a contentious bill featuring tax hike proposals.
“At least five people have been shot dead while treating the injured. Thirty-one people have been injured,” the Kenya Medical Association said in a statement.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission had earlier said in a statement on X that: “Police have shot four protesters, as witnessed by KHRC, killing one.”
Shortly before, Irungu Houghton, the executive director of Amnesty International Kenya, told AFP that “human rights observers are now reporting the increasing use of live bullets by the National Police Service in the capital of Nairobi”.
“Safe passage for medical officers to treat the many wounded is now urgent,” he said
A Reuters journalist counted the bodies of at least five protesters outside parliament. A paramedic, Vivian Achista, said at least 10 had been shot dead.
Another paramedic, Richard Ngumo, said more than 50 people had been wounded by gunfire. He was lifting two injured protesters into an ambulance outside parliament.
Kenya’s internet service also suffered “major disruption” on Tuesday, global web monitor NetBlocks said.
“Live network data show a major disruption to internet connectivity in #Kenya; the incident comes amidst a deadly crackdown by police on #RejectFinanceBill2024 protesters a day after authorities claimed there would be no internet shutdown,” the watchdog said on X, formerly Twitter.
Source:France24
