Protests broke out at one of Kenya’s largest refugee camps on Monday, humanitarian sources told AFP, with unconfirmed reports of at least one death, following months of increased tensions over aid cuts.
The Kakuma refugee camp in northern Kenya is the east African nation’s second-largest and hosts roughly 300,000 people from South Sudan, Somalia, Uganda and Burundi.
Humanitarian groups have grappled for months with rising tensions as rations have been reduced following massive cuts to aid from the United States and other donors
“One person is dead, two police officers are injured,” a source with the Department of Refugee Services (DRS) told AFP, warning that pressure was mounting over the struggling aid system.
“They [refugees] fight with police, they have burned the world food station,” he said, a reference to the UN’s World Food Program (WFP).
Pictures seen by AFP, shared in camp WhatsApp groups, showed one man with a serious head wound. Others showed an injured child, and another man who had been hurt on his leg.
AFP was unable to verify the images or the reports of the death independently.
Police spokesperson Michael Muchiri confirmed that officers were present after “some disturbances” but said no fatality was reported.
“The recent decision by US Govt to cut down on programmes related to USAID for instance is starting to have a effect on the refugee situation,” he told AFP.
One man, who works near the camp and asked for anonymity, told AFP that roughly 100 people had gathered to protest over the changes and that there had been multiple casualties.
He said many were upset over Kenya’s plans to turn the camp into a permanent settlement that refugees fear may lead to them losing some of their benefits.
John Thomas Muyumba, founder of a Kakuma youth group, told AFP that many were also concerned about changes to rationing.
He said a new system was being implemented in which only the worst-off would receive assistance.
Many refugees “felt discriminated against”, he said, adding that they were telling him: “‘Aren’t we all refugees? Don’t we all deserve the same support?'”
Muyumba said a protest over the changes had escalated.
“Stones were thrown, and one store was set on fire. Police intervened and opened fire,” he said, with one man killed.
The WFP confirmed to AFP that “a fire broke out at its storage facility” in the Kakuma camp’s Kalobeyei Settlement.
“WFP and the local authorities are looking into the circumstances surrounding this incident and assessing any damage or losses,” it added, without giving further details.
