Six Kenyan protesters found injured after anniversary arrests
Amnesty Kenya and KHRC said six people reported assault and torture in custody after arrests during a memorial protest in Nairobi.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
2 min read
Six Kenyans arrested during a memorial gathering for people killed in 2024 protests were found injured in Nairobi on Saturday, according to rights groups. The allegations add to pressure on Kenyan authorities over police conduct after hundreds of arrests during anniversary demonstrations.
Amnesty International Kenya said on X that Collins Ochieng, Muteti Mulinge, Michael Ngigi, Elisha Alam, Fredrick Ojiro and Christine Walubengo had been missing since their arrest on Thursday. The group said they were receiving medical care after alleging that they had been beaten and tortured while in custody.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission said the six were found in different parts of Nairobi on Saturday morning. In a post on X, KHRC said three people were located first and three more later, and that all six reported severe assault by police while detained.
KHRC said one person, Davis Lichuma, was still missing. The commission described his case as a forced disappearance and said his location remained unknown.
Rights groups said the six had been arrested outside Parliament during a gathering marking two years since deadly youth-led demonstrations against a finance bill. Those 2024 protests culminated in demonstrators entering Parliament and a violent security response.
Kenyan Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said about 355 people were arrested across the country on Thursday as demonstrators marked the anniversary, according to Al Jazeera. Many of those detained appeared in court on Friday.
Local media reported that the six people found Saturday had injuries and were taken to hospital. Amnesty Kenya called for an immediate investigation by the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, saying allegations of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment must be examined independently and impartially.
The anniversary came against a broader record of accusations of police violence in Kenya. Al Jazeera reported that the East African country has a long history of police abuse and enforced disappearances.
At least 127 people were killed during protests in Kenya in June and July 2024 and during a similar period in 2025, according to a police watchdog cited by Al Jazeera. The watchdog said security forces shot protesters with near-total impunity.
The 2024 anniversary demonstrations commemorated a protest in which 60 people were killed by security forces, according to Al Jazeera. Rights groups have continued to demand accountability for those deaths and for alleged abuses linked to subsequent protests.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.