More than 270 people arrested at anti-government rallies in Kenya | Protest news

According to police, the protests were abused by “suspects” who committed “criminal activities.”

Kenyan police have arrested more than 270 people posing as protesters and are suspected of running amok at anti-government rallies in the country.

“Security forces across the country have targeted suspects carrying out criminal activities under the guise of protests and taken them into custody,” said a statement from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) published on X late Tuesday.

In the capital Nairobi, 204 suspects were arrested, and another 68 in other parts of the country.

“The DCI has also deployed diligent investigators in the affected areas to track suspects who were caught on closed circuit television cameras and mobile phone recordings brutally robbing, stealing and destroying the properties and businesses of innocent citizens,” the statement added.

During today’s demonstrations, during which numerous buildings were destroyed by criminal elements, security forces across the country have targeted and detained suspects who had carried out criminal activities under the guise of protests.

In Nairobi and the surrounding area there are 204… pic.twitter.com/pHEbGvjggo

— DCI KENYA (@DCI_Kenya) July 2, 2024

Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki also condemned the protests and described them as an “orgy of violence”. He warned that the government would take action against anyone who took part in “anarchic chaos and cruel looting”.

“This reign of terror against the Kenyan people and the impunity of dangerous criminal gangs must end at all costs,” he said.

Since at least two dozen protesters were killed in clashes last week, riot police on Tuesday fired tear gas and attacked stone-throwing demonstrators in central Nairobi and across Kenya.

The demonstrations were directed against a controversial finance law that would impose new taxes and exacerbate the hardship of people already suffering from the cost of living crisis.

Although President William Ruto later repealed the measure, protesters have since called for his resignation as part of a broader campaign against his rule under the hashtag “RutoMustGo.”

They also rejected his calls for dialogue.

According to the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KNCHR), 39 people were killed and 361 injured during the two-week protests. The worst violence occurred in Nairobi on June 25.

The KNCHR also condemned the use of violence against demonstrators on Monday as “excessive and disproportionate”.

In Mombasa, Milan Waudo told Reuters: “People are dying on the streets and the only thing he can talk about is money. We are not money. We are people. We are human beings.”

“He (Ruto) has to take care of his people because if he cannot take care of his people, we don’t need him in this chair.”

Reporting from Nairobi, Al Jazeera’s Zein Brasravi said the rallies were a “reflection” of the anger people feel following the deaths of protesters.

“The protesters here say they feel their voices are still not being heard and the government still doesn’t understand why they are taking to the streets and protesting,” he said on Wednesday.

Activists blamed Tuesday’s violence on intruders they said were sent by the government to discredit their movement, and said now was the time to disperse.

Nevertheless, further demonstrations were announced for Thursday and Sunday.