Opposition politician Edwin Sifuna speaks during a rally in Nyandiwo, Homa Bay county, Kenya, on August 16, 2026.
(Nairobi) – Criminal gangs in Kenya have carried out a spate of violent attacks targeting civil society and opposition gatherings ahead of the 2027 elections, Human Rights Watch said today. The Kenyan authorities should ensure prompt and transparent investigations into the attacks and that people can exercise their political rights without fear of violence.
Over the last few months, groups of unidentified armed people have attacked a civil society event and several opposition political gatherings across the country, reportedly killing at least six people and injuring dozens more. The authorities do not appear to have taken meaningful steps to ensure accountability for these abuses.
“The spate of violence, as the pre-election period begins, threatens a return to the human rights abuses that have marred Kenya’s previous elections,” said Carine Kaneza Nantulya, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The authorities need to break this cycle of violence by ensuring that those responsible cannot act with impunity.”
The elections, in which President William Ruto is expected to seek a new term, are scheduled for August 10, 2027. Both President Ruto and opposition candidates have already held rallies across the country, with more planned in the coming weeks.
Between August 30 and September 9, Human Rights Watch interviewed 22 Kenyans, including nongovernmental organization workers, journalists, a Kenya National Human Rights Commission commissioner, and political opposition members, who said that the recent violence had created a climate of fear around the elections.
On June 12, a group of men violently disrupted a civil society meeting at All Saints’ Cathedral in Nairobi that had been organized to discuss the national budget. Diana Gichengo,
