In Kenya, demonstrators enter Parliament, police fire live ammunition, killing at least one

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Clashes broke out on Tuesday in the center of the Kenyan capital between police officers and demonstrators mobilized against plans for new government taxes.

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A Kenyan police officer throws a tear gas bomb during a national strike to protest against tax hikes, in central Nairobi, June 25, 2024. (LUIS TATO / AFP)

A person was killed by police on Tuesday, June 25, in the Kenyan capital Nairobi during a demonstration against a government plan for new taxes which descended into chaos, announced the NGO Kenyan Human Rights Commission (KHRC). “Police shot four protesters, as witnessed by KHRC, killing one,” said the NGO in a message on X. AFP journalists saw at least three inanimate bodies near Parliament.

Demonstrators entered the grounds of Parliament, where a controversial budget project is currently being debated which has triggered an anti-government protest movement, according to an AFP journalist, who specifies that a fire broke out in the building enclosure. The governor’s offices were also on fire, according to images broadcast by Citizen TV.

Tensions rose throughout the morning, with police using tear gas and then rubber bullets. Clashes broke out around midday after demonstrators advanced into an area housing official buildings (Supreme Court, Nairobi town hall, etc.). Some demonstrators threw stones in the direction of the police forces, in a tense confrontation a few hundred meters from Parliament.

Largely peaceful, the movement called “Occupy Parliament” was launched on social networks shortly after the presentation to Parliament, on June 13, of the 2024-2025 draft budget providing for the introduction of new taxes, including a 16% VAT on bread and an annual tax of 2.5% on private vehicles.


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