Human Rights Watch Report Reveals Kenyan Security Agencies Extra-Judicial Killings

Human Rights Watch report has accused Kenyan government for systematic extra-judicial killings in North Eastern Kenya and Nairobi area.

The report documents abuses involving law enforcement agencies related to operations aimed at thwarting the threat posed by Al-Shabab in counties in northeastern Kenya between December 2013 and December 2015.

87 page report dubbed “Death and Disappearance” has documented more than 34 cases of disappearance in which 11 confirmed dead at the hands of suspected Kenya Anti terror police unit.

Human Rights Watch said it has interviewed over 117 people in Garissa county in September, Wajir county in October and Mandera county in December 2015, as well as Nairobi in July and November 2015 and January 2016, and spoke to victims of arbitrary arrests, illegal detentions and mistreatment, witnesses to arrests and raids, security officials, including KDF and police officers with inside knowledge of the operations, political leaders in the national and county government, human rights defenders, clerics and journalists.

“The Kenyan government should urgently address allegations of abuses in counterterrorism operations, provide information regarding the identities, and whereabouts of people arrested in these operations, and ensure basic due process rights for all individuals arrested or currently in custody,”

Human Rights Watch has called upon President Uhuru Kenyatta to respond to the extra judicial killings by the security agencies in the country while calling upon his government to respect international law.

“President Uhuru Kenyatta should publicly acknowledge the scope and gravity of the numerous allegations and condemn any such abuses by security forces. He should direct security forces to comply with international human rights law, end enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and torture, and direct the security agencies and prosecutors to take all necessary steps to hold those responsible to account. Furthermore, he should establish an independent and credible multi-agency commission to investigate and report on the scope of abuses in counterterrorism operations country-wide.”

Kenya has experienced wave of attacks from armed group Alshabaab since it troops went inside Somalia on October 2011.