At least eight people have been killed and 400 injured as thousands took to the streets in a day of protests across Kenya against President William Ruto鈥檚 government.
Police clashed with protesters in the capital Nairobi and other cities exactly a year on from the wave of deadly anti-government demonstrations that hit the nation in 2024.
Many of those demonstrating chanted 鈥淩uto must go鈥 and waved branches as a symbol of peaceful opposition to his rule.
The government banned live TV and radio coverage of the protests, but its decree was overturned by the High Court in the capital, Nairobi.
Ruto urged protesters not to threaten peace and stability, as crowds tried to reach his official residence but were pushed back by police.
鈥淧rotests should not be to destroy peace in Kenya. We do not have another country to go to when things go wrong. It is our responsibility to keep our country safe,鈥 he said.
The president was speaking at a burial ceremony in the coastal county of Kilifi.
His absence from State House, his official residence, was notable as young protesters threatened to storm it.
Police used barricades and razor wire to seal off major roads 鈥 especially those leading to State House and parliament.
The authorities have not yet given any casualty figures from Wednesday鈥檚 protests, but the Kenya Medical Association, Law Society of Kenya and the Police Reforms Working Group said in a joint statement that at least eight protesters were killed.
Of the 400 injured, 83 required 鈥渟pecialised treatment鈥 and eight had suffered gunshot wounds. The injured included three police officers, the statement added.
A human rights group 鈥 Amnesty Kenya 鈥 put the death toll as high as 16.
One demonstrator, Amina Mude, told the BBC she joined the protests 鈥渢o fight for the future of my kids鈥.
鈥淚 feel like as a country we鈥檙e not going in the right direction, especially in education and everything happening.
鈥淚 feel like it鈥檚 high time that the country and the leadership listens to us.鈥
In Nairobi, video footage showed plumes of white tear gas drifting between buildings, sending protesters scrambling for cover, coughing, and shielding their eyes.
In the heart of the city, protesters marched past shuttered shops and empty streets.
The fence around parliament was lined with wreaths and handwritten notes from grieving families and defiant youths 鈥 a reminder of last year鈥檚 unrest at the site.
A young woman draped in a Kenyan flag clutched a poster bearing the names of those killed a year ago by the security forces as they tried to end the protests.
Source: BBC