3 dead, dozens injured as fresh protests roil Kenya

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Three people were killed and dozens injured on Tuesday in violent protests across Kenya as demonstrators clashed with the police.

The unrest, marked by teargas, gunfire, and intense street battles led to severe disruptions in capital Nairobi and other major cities.

Authorities on Tuesday confirmed that two people had been killed while dozens of others, mainly youth left injured, nursing gunshot wounds.

“Two people lost their lives today in the protests, we cannot ascertain the cause of death due to interference by protesters who stormed the hospital and took the bodies to the local area police station as soon as they arrived,” a doctor from the Kibwezi Hospital in Machakos County, eastern Kenya, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Anadolu.

One more person was reportedly shot dead in Nairobi according to local media.

"Our staff and volunteers are actively on the ground, providing critical first aid services," the Red Cross said in a statement on Tuesday.

The protests, dubbed 'Total Shutdown Tuesday,' saw thousands take to the streets to express their outrage and calling for President William Ruto to resign.

Fearing looting and vandalism, business owners stood guard outside their shops with sticks, determined to protect their properties from the chaos that ensued.

Despite some concessions by the government to address the demands of Kenya's youth, including firing his Cabinet, and the resignation of Kenya’s inspector general of Police, the protests continued unabated.

The violence has been further fueled by the recent discovery of dismembered bodies at a dump site in the Mukuru slums of Nairobi linked to a serial killer.

At least 39 people were killed in protests, which began on June 18 over planned tax hikes, according to a report by the state-funded Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, and with the current development the new death toll stands at 42.