NAIROBI: Kenyan police fired to disperse demonstrators in Nairobi marking the 35th anniversary of pro-democracy rallies on Monday, as Kenya’s rights watchdog reported 10 dead and 29 injured nationwide in the latest anti-government protests to end in bloodshed.

The death of blogger Albert Ojwang in police custody last month has given the protests fresh impetus, fuelling anger against the authorities and bringing hundreds onto the streets.

A reporter saw police fire at advancing protesters in the Nairobi suburb of Kangemi, with one man later lying motionless on the road with a bleeding wound. The suburb’s Eagle Nursing Home said six people had been admitted with injuries, and that two had died from gunshot wounds. A source at Kenyatta National Hospital said it was treating 24 injured people, but did not elaborate on their injuries.

The government-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said it had documented 10 dead and 29 injured. It did not provide a breakdown of the figures, recorded across 17 of Kenya’s 47 counties.

Law enforcers have been deploying heavily in Nairobi since youth-led protests in June 2024 that initially focused on tax hikes but expanded to cover issues such as corruption, police brutality and unexplained disappearances of government critics.

Police used tear gas and water cannon on Monday to disperse hundreds of demonstrators advancing along a road connecting Kangemi to downtown Nairobi.

Hours later, protesters and police scuffled, and a reporter saw police opening fire as the crowd charged at them. The Commission on Human Rights said it saw “numerous hooded officers, not in uniform, travelling in unmarked vehicles”. A court order requires police to be easily identifiable following allegations that plain clothes police fired live rounds at demonstrators last year.

The Commission also said criminal gangs wielding whips and machetes appeared to be operating alongside police in Nairobi and the Rift Valley town of Eldoret. Local media said there had also been demonstrations in the towns of Nyeri, Embu and the lakeside city of Nakuru, where half a dozen police on horseback dispersed stone-throwing protesters.

Police had blocked major roads leading into Nairobi and restricted traffic within the city, leaving streets deserted but for the demonstrators, who arrived on foot. Most schools and at least one shopping mall were shut in anticipation of trouble.

Published in Dawn, July 8th, 2025