Man shot dead during protest against proposed US Ebola quarantine facility in Kenya | Kenya
Kenyan police shot and killed a man during a protest against a proposed Ebola quarantine facility for US citizens.
Patrick Wahome, who organized protests against the center in Nanyuki, told Reuters on Tuesday that the man died of a gunshot wound to the head. The agency’s reporters saw the body lying motionless in the police van, with a major head injury.
The police spokesman said he had no information about the incident.
Dozens of people had gathered near the Laikipia air base, where the center was proposed to be established in Nanyuki, 190 kilometers from the capital Nairobi; some were wearing protective equipment and carrying a coffin marked “Ebola.”
While many people were detained, the police used tear gas to disperse the small crowd.
The non-profit Kenyan Human Rights Commission said of X: “Hooded police officers… opened fire with live bullets and arbitrarily arrested 19 protesters.”
Protesters said they opposed the center in part on the grounds that they did not want potential carriers of the highly contagious disease to be on Kenyan soil. Anger has been rising across the country in recent weeks. Two people were killed during a protest in the town on Monday last week.
The US government plans to send 30 medical personnel to staff the Nanyuki facility, which will have 50 beds if completed.
Following a petition by the Kenyan non-profit Katiba Institute, a Nairobi court late last month temporarily blocked the establishment of the facility and the admission of people exposed to Ebola.
Last week he banned the Kenyan government from going ahead with the plan until the case is resolved. The next hearing will be held on June 23.
Kenyan President William Ruto has vowed to press ahead, saying the country is indebted to Washington for years of aid support.
Health authorities in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are struggling to contain the virus outbreak. The outbreak was declared on May 15, but the virus is thought to have been circulating undetected for weeks before then.
The outbreak, which the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international public health emergency, is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, for which there is no vaccine or approved treatment.
As of June 6, the Democratic Republic of Congo has reported a total of 515 confirmed cases with 91 deaths, while Uganda has reported 19 confirmed cases, including two deaths, as well as one probable case who has died, according to WHO figures. There are no known cases in Kenya.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
