NANYUKI, Kenya – Nanyuki saw heightened unrest on Monday, June 1, after hundreds of residents marched to oppose plans to establish a U.S.-linked Ebola quarantine facility at Laikipia Air Base.
Carrying placards and tree branches, demonstrators demanded the project be scrapped entirely, citing fears it could expose the region to health risks.
The protest unfolded despite a High Court order temporarily suspending the project, with residents insisting the facility should not proceed at all.
Security forces, including police and the military, were heavily deployed as tensions escalated. Clashes broke out later in the day when officers attempted to disperse crowds, with some protesters blocking roads and advancing toward restricted areas before being pushed back.
The government has maintained that the proposed facility is part of Kenya’s international obligations in managing infectious disease outbreaks, but local opposition remains strong, with authorities yet to issue a detailed response to the protests.
This follows a High Court ruling after an urgent petition by the Katiba Institute challenging the legality and safety of the project.
The High Court certified the application as urgent and granted interim conservatory orders restraining the respondents from establishing, operationalising, approving, or facilitating any Ebola exposure, quarantine, isolation, or treatment facility in Kenya under any arrangement with the United States or any other foreign government or agency, pending hearing of the case.
