Kenyan policeman arrested in blogger's death as hundreds protest
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In tonight's edition, Kenyan authorities arrested a police constable in the death of a political blogger who was in custody, as angry protests rage in Nairobi. Also, Gambians have been growing increasingly worried by the devastation being caused by a growing fishmeal processing industry on their shores. And Nigeria's cost of living crisis has reached the relatively affluent class of dog owners, who are struggling to feed their pets because of soaring food costs.
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Euronews
6 days ago
- Euronews
British troops stationed in Kenya found paying for sex despite ban
British soldiers at a base in Kenya are continuing to pay for sex despite a ban that was intended to stamp out sexual exploitation across the military, an investigation has found. An inquiry was commissioned by the British Army last year following allegations that some of its troops stationed at a training site near the central Kenyan town of Nanyuki were using sex workers, as well as claims of serious abuses including rape. In 2022, the UK's defence ministry announced that it was banning "all sexual activity which involves the abuse of power, including buying sex whilst abroad". However, the report published this week found that soldiers at the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK) were still engaging in transactional sex at a "low to moderate level". UK Chief of General Staff Roly Walker, who commissioned the inquiry, said there was "absolutely no place for sexual exploitation and abuse by people in the British Army". "The findings of the inquiry I commissioned conclude that transactional sex is still happening in Kenya at a low to moderate level. It should not be happening at all," he said in a statement. The army was implementing new measures to stop sexual exploitation and abuse, including making it easier to discharge soldiers who engage in transactional sex and introducing a new obligatory training programme on the issue, Walker said. A UK-Kenya defence cooperation agreement allows thousands of British soldiers to train in the East African country each year. The British Army's inquiry focused on a period between October 2022 and March this year, during which time some 7,666 of its personnel served in Kenya. There were 35 instances where transactional sex was suspected to have taken place. Of those cases, 26 happened before training on the ban on using sex workers was given across the British Army in November 2022. Nine instances were reported since then. In June, a British soldier stationed at BATUK was sent back to the UK after being accused of raping a woman near the site, according to media reports. A defence ministry spokesperson confirmed at the time that a "service person" had been arrested in Kenya and was under investigation, but did not provide further details. There have long been concerns about the way British forces treat local residents in Nanyuki. The most high-profile case involves the murder of 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru in 2012. She was last seen alive leaving a bar with British troops near their training camp, with her body later found in a septic tank. An inquest in 2019 concluded that Wanjiru was murdered by British soldiers but no suspect has been charged. In April this year, Kenyan police said a file had been passed to the country's director of public prosecutions for a charging decision. This coincided with a visit to the country by UK Defence Secretary John Healey, who met with Wanjiru's family and discussed the case with Kenyan President William Ruto. In 2021, the then-head of the British Army, General Mark Carleton-Smith, said he was "appalled" by allegations surrounding the murder of Wanjiru.
AFP
28-07-2025
- AFP
Old image causes confusion over convicted ex-Kenyan leader's whereabouts
Former Kenyan governor Ferdinand Waititu was sentenced to prison on corruption charges in February 2025. But an image recently shared on social media shows Waititu at a hair transplant clinic, and not in jail as expected. However, this is misleading; the image predates Waititu's conviction and subsequent imprisonment. 'Former Kiambu governor Ferdinand Waititu, who is supposed to be in jail, spotted at a hair transplant clinic,' reads a Facebook post published on July 20, 2025. Image Screenshot of the misleading post, taken July 24, 2025 The image shows Waititu and a man in blue scrubs and a surgical cap, standing in a room in front of a sign that reads 'Artistic Hair Transplant Center'. Similar claims were published elsewhere on X (here and here) and Facebook (here and here). Waititu, the former governor of Kenya's Kiambu county, was impeached in January 2020 on charges of gross violation of the constitution, crimes under the national law and abuse of office (archived here). In February 2025, he was remanded and sentenced to a fine of Ksh 53.7 million ($413,490), or in default, 12 years in prison, for charges involving a Ksh 588 million ($4,527,600) graft case. He was also barred from vying for any political seat for 10 years (archived here and here). Waititu was first charged in the corruption case in July 2019 (archived here). Despite appealing his conviction and seeking release on bond pending appeal, Waititu has had his applications denied by the High Court twice and is being held at Nairobi's Kamiti maximum security prison (archived here, here and here). However, the image purportedly showing the former governor recently at a hair transplant clinic is old. Old image AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and found that the image was published on Instagram by 'Artistic_Hair_Centre' on July 20, 2025 (archived here). 'Former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu, thank you for trusting Artistic Hair Transplant Centre,' reads the post. The post led some to question if Waititu had been released from prison, as it was not clear when the photo was taken. In response, the clinic clarified: 'This photo was taken before any legal issues. We shared it to show real results from our work nothing more. We focus on professionalism, not personal matters.' Image Screenshot of the clinic's response on the Instagram post Speaking to local media outlet Tuko, Jared Kimwaga, the doctor photographed with Waititu, said that he handled Waititu's hair transplant procedures in February and October 2024 (archived here). He explained that he had not seen the ex-governor since October 2024 and that the photo was reposted to showcase the kind of clients the clinic handles. AFP Fact Check contacted Kimwaga, and he reiterated: 'It is an old photo that has been used out of context. I performed two hair restoration procedures on the former governor twice last year. The recent photo was for promotional purposes.' A look at the clinic's website shows that they have promoted their work with other politicians, including former Nairobi governor Mike Sonko, though the photos are not dated (archived here). Image Screenshot of photos of politicians published on the clinic's website There is no credible evidence to suggest that Waititu has been released from prison.
AFP
28-07-2025
- AFP
Video shows Kenya protests, not mass runaways from Cambodia's internet sweatshops
"Mass escape from scam parks in Cambodia," reads the Chinese text over the clip shared on July 19 on Red Note. The 45-second video showed a group of people running on a highway. Image Screenshot of the false Red Note post captured on July 28, 2025, with a red X added by AFP It surfaced after Cambodian authorities said 2,000 people were arrested in raids, including at least 226 Chinese nationals, after Prime Minister Hun Manet Workers at the centres typically use romance or business cons to defraud web users of an estimated $40 billion annually, but many say they were trafficked or lured there under false pretences. The false claim also spread elsewhere on Bilibili. "They are all victims," one user wrote. Another commented, "The cyber-fraud is finally over." A reverse image search on Google showed a clip showing the same scene was uploaded on TikTok on June 26 with hashtags that read "maandamano" -- or "protest" in Swahili -- and the date June 25 (archived link). Image Screenshot comparison of the false post (left) and the TikTok clip (right) The clip was shared after protesters held ral imagery also showed the clip was filmed along Thika Road in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi (archived link). Image Screenshot comparison of the Google Map Street View (left) and the TikTok video with matching features highlighted by AFP (right) in their reporting, including Citizen TV Kenya (archived here). The Daily Nation published photos where the four-lane highway can be seen several times (archived link). AFP has debunked another false claim about scam centres in Cambodia here.
