Police open fire on hungry refugees in Kenya as US aid cuts trigger food shortages
At least two people were reportedly killed after angry protesters attempted to storm a United Nations facility in Kakuma, a settlement housing more than 300,000 refugees.
Aid workers have warned of a looming humanitarian crisis in Kenya's refugee camps after the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) was forced to slash rations when the Trump administration cut foreign aid.
Until January, the United States funded 70 percent of WFP's programme feeding more in the Kakuma and Dadaab camps, which house more than 800,000 refugees who have fled conflict and natural disaster from more than a dozen countries in Africa and beyond.
But shortly after Donald Trump's inauguration, the State department halted contributions, leaving WFP unable to provide more than 30 per cent of the minimum daily calories needed to stay healthy.
Assistance is usually split between direct food aid and cash handouts, designed to give refugees choice and support small businesses in the camps. But ration cuts have left many families skipping meals, with child and adult malnutrition rising sharply.
The crisis is most acute at Kalobeyei, an experimental settlement within Kakuma where more than 70,000 refugees relied almost entirely on cash transfers. Handouts stopped altogether at the end of June, collapsing local businesses and driving many into debt.
Ironically, Monday's protest, which was centred on Kalobeyei, was sparked by news that the programme would resume – but only partially. Refugees were divided into four categories, with the most vulnerable receiving just £3-£6 a month, while the rest would get nothing.
Hundreds gathered outside a WFP storage facility at dawn to denounce what they called 'differentiated assistance'. As crowds swelled, the protest turned violent, witnesses said.
'They broke down the doors and were attacking people with knives and stones,' said one refugee, injured by a rock and trapped inside with WFP staff. 'We managed to escape in WFP vehicles but a number of people were hurt.'
Witnesses said demonstrators set fire to an empty warehouse before police opened fire, killing two people and wounding several others.
Kenyan police and UN officials declined to comment on casualties but The Telegraph was able to confirm the death of one protester, shot in the back of the head.
WFP said it was investigating.
'The World Food Programme (WFP) can confirm that a fire broke out at its storage facility in Kalobeyei Settlement in northern Kenya on Monday 28th July,' a WFP spokesperson said. 'WFP and the local authorities are looking into the circumstances surrounding this incident and assessing any damage or losses.
'WFP's priority is the safety and well-being of the people we serve, and our staff.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
12 minutes ago
- The Independent
Significant parts of the Constitution were quietly removed from the Congress website
Significant parts of the Constitution were quietly removed from the Congress website but have since been restored. Multiple outlets reported Wednesday Sections 9 and 10, and a large chunk of Section 8, had vanished from the website's annotated version. Section 8 discusses the powers the Constitution gives Congress and Section 9 discusses the powers it denies to the legislative body. Section 10 discusses the powers the Constitution denies to the states. Notably, Section 9 mentions the Writ of Habeas Corpus, which protects Americans from unlawful detention. 'The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it,' the Constitution reads. In May, White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller told reporters the Trump administration is 'looking at' suspending the writ of habeas corpus for migrants under claims of an 'invasion.' The missing text sparked an online frenzy with Reddit users questioning what happened. 'They must think that removing those portions from their own site changes the constitution,' one Reddit user from the military subreddit r/Military wrote Wednesday morning. One Reddit user suggested: 'Somebody kicked a plug out of a server (edit; not literally, but somebody who was updating messed up) or somebody deliberately f***ed up.' 'This isn't a server problem- this is deliberate,' another replied. The Library of Congress said the missing text was an accident. 'It has been brought to our attention that some sections of Article 1 are missing from the Constitution 'We've learned that this is due to a coding error. We have been working to correct this and expect it to be resolved soon,' the library wrote on X at around 11 a.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday. The White House did not give The Independent a comment when asked about the coding error. No matter the intentions behind the sections' removal, the incident 'raises serious transparency concerns,' MediasTouch News wrote in an article. The temporary glitch did not affect the validity of the laws removed from the online version of the Constitution. The Library of Congress posted shortly after 3 p.m. the missing sections had been restored. 'Upkeep of Constitution Annotated and other digital resources is a critical part of the Library's mission, and we appreciate the feedback that alerted us to the error and allowed us to fix it,' the library wrote.
Reuters
13 minutes ago
- Reuters
Schumer condemns Trump administration's $64-million NYC security cut
WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - New York's senior senator on Wednesday blasted the Trump administration's plan to cut security funding for New York City, calling the decision 'irresponsible and dangerous.' The Federal Emergency Management Agency posted a notice of New York's reduced grant online on Friday, just days after a gunman killed four people inside a Manhattan skyscraper. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who represents New York, asked FEMA to reverse a $64-million cut to the city's federal security funding, first reported by Reuters on Tuesday. 'Donald Trump treats NY like his personal punching bag in an attempt to settle political scores — and failing to release NY's critical anti-terrorism funds is stooping to a new low,' he said in a statement. The cut is part of the Trump administration's transformation of FEMA, the federal agency charged with responding to disasters. The agency also distributes security funding to states and densely populated cities to 'respond to acts of terrorism and other catastrophic events,' according to its website. The Department of Homeland Security, FEMA's parent agency, said in a statement it is encouraging cities to tap a separate pool of funding to cover security needs, known as the State Homeland Security Program. FEMA is also slashing New York's funding from that program by 38% year-on-year, according to an August 1 notice, opens new tab. FEMA said in July it would not cut it, but reversed course. FEMA did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the change. FEMA also cut urban security funding for Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Los Angeles, according to the August 1 notice. Washington saw the largest cut year-on-year at 44%. The Trump administration is also requiring states to spend part of their federal security funding on arresting migrants. In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams is 'committed to securing every federal dollar that New Yorkers deserve,' his spokesperson Liz Garcia said in a statement. The city spends the funding over several years, adding that the mayor's office recently used part of its 2020 money, she said. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, said in a statement she would ask Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about the funding cuts, adding that it is possible the agency is 'risking New Yorkers' safety as a political power move.'
The Independent
42 minutes ago
- The Independent
UCLA says Trump administration has frozen $584 million in grants, threatening research
The Trump administration has suspended $584 million in federal grants for the University of California, Los Angeles, nearly double the amount that was previously thought, the school's chancellor announced Wednesday. UCLA is the first public university whose federal grants have been targeted by the administration over allegations of civil rights violations related to antisemitism and affirmative action. The Trump administration has frozen or paused federal funding over similar allegations against private colleges. 'If these funds remain suspended, it will be devastating for UCLA and for Americans across the nation,' Chancellor Julio Frenk said Wednesday in a statement, noting the groundbreaking research that has come out of the university. The departments affected rely on funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Energy, Frenk said. The U.S. Department of Education did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press requesting comment. The Trump administration recently announced the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division found UCLA violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 'by acting with deliberate indifference in creating a hostile educational environment for Jewish and Israeli students.' The announcement came as UCLA reached a $6 million settlement with three Jewish students and a Jewish professor who sued the university, arguing it violated their civil rights by allowing pro-Palestinian protesters in 2024 to block their access to classes and other areas on campus. The university has said that it is committed to campus safety and inclusivity and will continue to implement recommendations. The new UC president, James B. Milliken, said in a statement Wednesday that it has agreed to talks with the administration over the allegations against UCLA. "These cuts do nothing to address antisemitism," Milliken said. 'Moreover, the extensive work that UCLA and the entire University of California have taken to combat antisemitism has apparently been ignored.' Milliken said the 'cuts would be a death knell for innovative work that saves lives, grows our economy, and fortifies our national security. It is in our country's best interest that funding be restored.' As part of the lawsuit settlement, UCLA said it will contribute $2.3 million to eight organizations that combat antisemitism and support the university's Jewish community. It also has created an Office of Campus and Community Safety, instituting new policies to manage protests on campus. Frenk, whose Jewish father and grandparents fled Nazi Germany to Mexico and whose wife is the daughter of a Holocaust survivor, launched an initiative to combat antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias. Last week, Columbia agreed to pay $200 million as part of a settlement to resolve investigations into the government's allegations that the school violated federal antidiscrimination laws. The agreement also restores more than $400 million in research grants. The Trump administration plans to use its deal with Columbia as a template for other universities, with financial penalties that are now seen as an expectation.
