PRO-PALESTINE PROTEST IN KENYA TEARGASSED, SEVERAL ARRESTED

A group of Kenyans held a protest on 25 January at the German embassy in Nairobi to protest the former colonial power’s support of Israel as it bombards Palestinians in Gaza. Like clockwork, the police descended upon the peaceful event, lobbing teargas and making arrests. The organisers say a permit to protest had been obtained. This is not the first time a protest has been broken up. Police were caught on camera disrupting a pro-Palestine event held in October on private premises, where they made arrests.

Germany, like most Western countries, has refused to condemn Israel for killing more than 26,000 civilians in a little more than 3 months in a densely populated enclave, home to more than 2 million people.

Berlin recently approved a shipment of 10,000 rounds of tank ammunition to Israel, as it unleashes police on pro-Palestine protesters. The country has been accused of using its support for Jewish holocaust survivors in Israel to wash away its guilt. Meanwhile, Germany’s 1904-08 genocide in Namibia has not been fully redressed. Rather, Germany has offered 1.1 billion euros, but only for specific development projects.

Back in Kenya, the president issued a statement in support of Israel shortly after the 7 October escalation in the Palestine-Israel conflict. It diverged from the African Union’s position, which has placed the escalation in the context of decades of Israeli occupation of Palestine. Israel sells Kenya teargas, such as that used on protesters in this video. In 1976, Kenya allowed itself to be used as a launch pad for an Israeli operation into Uganda.

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