🔗 Share this article

Four individuals perished in Nairobi when security forces discharged weapons and used teargas to break up huge gatherings at a venue where political figure Raila Odinga's body was lying in state.

Political Figure Honored

Odinga, who was a significant presence in the nation's political landscape for decades, died on midweek at eight decades while undergoing healthcare in India.

He fought tirelessly for political pluralism, and we benefit from those freedoms today because of his work.

Disorder Unfolds at Stadium

Numerous devotees assembled on thoroughfares from early morning, with mayhem erupting when a large crowd broke through a barrier at the capital's primary venue, prompting military personnel to shoot skyward.

• Two people lost their lives to gunfire at the stadium
• Casualties later rose to four
• Scores of persons sustained injuries
• Law enforcement employed irritants to disperse thousands attendees

Airport Incident and Parliament Situation

Earlier in the day, numerous of mourners momentarily entered the city's air terminal, disrupting a official event where the head of state and dignitaries were welcoming Odinga's body with formal recognition.

This event caused a temporary halt of airport operations.

Assemblies also occupied surrounding thoroughfares and attempted to breach the government complex, where the government had initially planned the open visitation.

National Heritage and Community Support

While predominantly identified as an opposition figure, Odinga served as head of government in 2008 and also formed a political pact with the president last year in a political journey marked by evolving coalitions.

He commanded passionate devotion among followers, particularly in his ethnic group based in the country's west, many of whom believe he was denied the highest office by electoral fraud.

Numerous of Odinga's followers, who were not living in 1991 when Kenya transitioned to a pluralistic political system, paid tribute to Odinga's work as an advocate.