Kenya finance bill protests: Was there a massacre in Githurai?

Reports of a mass killing by police in a Nairobi suburb spread quickly. The BBC looked for the evidence.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUK General ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersWas there a massacre after Kenya's anti-tax protests?14 hours agoBy Anne Soy, BBC deputy Africa editor & Peter Mwai, BBC Verify, NairobiShareAFPPolice opened fire at protesters outside parliamentIn the chaotic context of this week's violence on the streets of the Kenyan capital and a government accused of responding brutally to protests, rumours began to take on a life of their own - feeding into public anger and further stoking a situation that was already tense.

On Tuesday citizens watched in horror as a bloody day unfolded in Nairobi.

The country’s police watchdog is now investigating allegations that officers shot dead protesters outside the national parliament during a day of demonstrations in which at least 23 people are reported to have died.

Within hours many Kenyans began to hear reports of another, even more brutal incident - an alleged massacre of civilians in Githurai, a residential suburb 14km (nine miles) north-east of central Nairobi.

The story quickly took hold on social media, where some people claimed more than 200 had been killed.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c25l14wpkryo

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