… The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) recorded at least 63 deaths, 610 injuries and 74 enforced disappearances during the 2024 protest period, with 26 people still unaccounted for.The Human Rights Watch (HRW) World Report 2026 put the number of people still missin …
… According to Human Rights Watch, based on incidents reported in 2024, an average of 13 women and girls are killed every week in Kenya, while approximately 130 cases of sexual violence are reported during the same period. …
… Human Rights Watch documented that at least 41 people linked to Kenya's protests remain missing, 26 from 2024 and 15 from 2025.Last week, President William Ruto announced a fund of Sh1.94 billion to compensate 1,100 people affected by violent protests between 2017 and 2025, with …
… No officer has been convicted.Dozens of government critics were also abducted in 2024 and 2025, many never seen again, according to rights groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. …
… The ban has been sharply criticised by international organisations, including Human Rights Watch, which said it placed LGBTQ+ peoples’ lives at risk while also “encouraging citizens to surveil and denounce one another”. …
… Human Rights Watch, urging African nations to reject the arrangements, argued in September that the "opaque deals" were "part of a US policy approach that violated international human rights law".
… Masra, a former prime minister and a leading opponent of President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno, was arrested in May 2025.In August 2025, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison for inciting violence and complicity to murder in what Human Rights Watch called a politically motivated tr …
… Human rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have previously criticised forced evictions in Mogadishu, saying thousands of displaced families fleeing drought and conflict have been removed without notice or alternative shelter. …
… Last week, the Human Rights Watch said it "mimics" laws passed in Russia and allied countries, using deliberately vague terms that can be applied to any campaigner deemed a nuisance. …
Human rights activist Wafula Buke dismissed Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo's assertion that reported missing Kenyans are simply hiding to embarrass the state, arguing instead that enforced disappearances are a deliberate tactic to suppress dissent and isolate critics from legal protections. Buke noted that victims who reappear often have serious injuries and psychological trauma, and said the abductions contradict constitutional guarantees of the right to protest.
Human rights activist Wafula Buke dismissed Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo's assertion that reported missing Kenyans are simply hiding to embarrass the state, arguing instead that enforced disappearances are a deliberate tactic to suppress dissent and isolate critics from legal protections. Buke noted that victims who reappear often have serious injuries and psychological trauma, and said the abductions contradict constitutional guarantees of the right to protest.
Activist Davis Lichuma has gone missing after recent protests near Parliament, while five other protesters arrested during the same June 25 demonstrations were found with torture injuries; police say they are investigating the disappearance and allegations of enforced disappearances and torture.
An opinion piece argues that integrated care at gender-based violence clinics is essential for managing and rehabilitating survivors, noting that GBV remains a pervasive human rights violation in Kenya with an estimated 13 women and girls killed weekly and approximately 130 sexual violence cases reported weekly.
Police sealed off Nairobi with roadblocks and teargas on Thursday as Kenyans marked the second anniversary of the June 25, 2024, Gen Z demonstrations that left more than 120 people dead. Officers arrested protesters at multiple locations including Parliament Buildings and Kitengela, restricting movement to the city centre.
Two years after Gen-Z protests in June 2024 that resulted in dozens of deaths, families of police violence victims say President Ruto's announcement of 2 billion shillings to compensate 1,100 affected people is insufficient and avoids accountability. According to the Independent Police Oversight Authority, 62 people died during the initial protests and 65 during anniversary protests in 2025, though rights groups estimate the toll is higher and say police were responsible.
Ghana's parliament has passed legislation that criminalizes homosexuality and LGBTQ+ activities, with penalties including up to three years' imprisonment for identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer. The bill also introduces a duty to report such acts to police and could penalize allies of LGBTQ+ people; it requires presidential ratification before becoming law.
Sierra Leone became the latest African country to receive migrants expelled from the United States under President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, with nine west African deportees from Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea and Senegal arriving Wednesday morning at Freetown's international airport.
Chad's Supreme Court rejected an appeal by opposition leader Succes Masra, a former prime minister arrested in May 2025 and sentenced to 20 years in prison for inciting violence and complicity to murder. Human Rights Watch said his continued detention demonstrates the government's intolerance of dissent.
Somalia's opposition leaders, including former President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, have called for mass protests in Mogadishu on Sunday over alleged forced evictions and demolitions of informal settlements that have displaced vulnerable residents over the past two years, escalating tensions days before President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's term ends.
Uganda's parliament passed the "Protection of Sovereignty Bill," which criminalises actions promoting "the interests of a foreigner against those of Uganda" and labels foreign-funded recipients as "agents of foreigners," with convictions carrying sentences of up to 20 years. Rights groups and journalists have criticised the law for mirroring Russian language used to silence dissent.