Author: KahawaTungu Reporter

A mini reshuffle in the Kenya Police on Thursday March 20 saw West Pokot County police commander Issa Mohamud promoted and named the Western Regional Police Commander. He replaced Kiprono Langat in a move insiders said was aimed at enhancing operations in the area. Deputy Inspector General of Kenya Police Eliud Lagat recalled Langat to police headquarters pending redeployment. Parts of western region including Kakamega and Bungoma have been experiencing cases of political violence that needed attention, officials said. For instance, goons led by former Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa, others by former senator Cleophas Malala and another group by Mumias…

The Rwanda-backed M23 armed group took control of the mining hub of Walikale in DR Congo, local sources said Thursday, despite attempts to broker a ceasefire this week. The seizure of the town of around 60,000 people late on Wednesday marks the farthest west the anti-government group has advanced into the interior of the Democratic Republic of Congo since it emerged in 2012. It comes just after Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame held surprise talks in Doha on Tuesday, expressing their support for a ceasefire. But the terms of any truce are up in the…

South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir sacked the governor of northeastern Upper Nile state where clashes have escalated between government troops and an ethnic militia he accuses of allying with his rival and First Vice President Riek Machar. The latest development compounds a confrontation between the two men that started after the White Army militia forced government troops to withdraw from the flashpoint town of Nasir near the Ethiopian border. In response Kiir’s government detained several officials from Machar’s party SPLM-IO, including the petroleum minister and the deputy head of the army. The mounting standoff has fuelled fears that the world’s…

Heathrow Airport is closing all day Friday because of a large fire at a nearby electrical substation that supplies it. The airport is experiencing a “significant power outage” because of the fire, a statement from Heathrow said. “To maintain the safety of our passengers and colleagues, Heathrow will be closed until 23:59 on 21 March,” it added. “Passengers are advised not to travel to the airport and should contact their airline for further information. We apologise for the inconvenience.” “Whilst fire crews are responding to the incident, we do not have clarity on when power may be reliably restored,” a…

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing officials to begin dismantling the Department of Education, a promise he made on the 2024 campaign trail. “We’re going to shut it down as quickly as possible,” Trump said after signing the order on Thursday. “It’s doing us no good.” Trump has long called for the department to be axed, a cherished goal of some conservatives, but completely shutting it would require an act of Congress, which is unlikely. The move is already facing legal challenges from those seeking to block the agency’s closure as well as sweeping cuts to…

A US court has blocked the Trump administration from deporting a Georgetown University researcher who was detained by immigration authorities earlier this week. Badar Khan Suri, an Indian national, is a postdoctoral fellow studying and teaching at the prestigious Washington DC institution on a student visa. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) accused him of “spreading Hamas propaganda” and having “close connections to a known or suspected terrorist”. Mr Suri’s lawyer and employer have denied the allegation. His lawyer said in a court filing that his client was targeted because of his wife’s “identity as a Palestinian and her constitutionally…

A 22-year-old man convicted of defiling a seven-year-old girl in Sondu Township, Soin-Sigowet Sub-County, was sentenced to life imprisonment by a Kericho Law Court. The accused was found guilty of defilement after the prosecution proved the case beyond reasonable doubt. The court heard that on December 19, 2024, at approximately 1200 hrs, the victim was washing dishes outside their rental house when the accused lured her into his house under the pretext of sending her to the shop. He then locked the door and, under threats of violence, defiled her. The prosecution presented four witnesses, including the victim, alongside key…

Former Nyandarua County Governor, Daniel Waithaka Mwangi, was Thursday sentenced to two years in prison or a fine of Sh1 million after being found guilty of procurement irregularities. The verdict was delivered at the Nyahururu Anti-Corruption Courts, where Waithaka was sentenced alongside Grace Wanjiru Gitonga, the former County Executive Committee Member for Water, Energy, Environment, and Natural Resources. Gitonga also received a sentence of two years or a Sh1 million fine. Waithaka was sentenced to two years in prison or a Sh500,000 fine for wilfully failing to comply with procurement laws, and another two years or Sh500,000 fine for abuse…

Two suspects were arrested Wednesday after they had raided a petrol station along Mandera Road in Wajir Town and robbed attendants of cash. The two were part of five men who were in jungle uniforms and who raided the petrol station at night, police said. A guard on duty reported five men raided the facility and tied his legs and hands before robbing Sh30,000 from attendants. An alarm was raised alerting police who were on patrol. The team responded there and caught up with two of the suspects. The other accomplices managed to escape in the 2 am incident. They…

Multi agency teams are searching for a man who was abducted by gunmen in an attack in Modika area, Garissa County. A man who was in a car that was also hijacked and driven towards Somalia border said they were headed for Ifo area when the vehicle was blocked. Two men who were armed with pistols jumped out of the blocking car and bundled the occupants out in the March 19 incident. They assaulted them and later took control of their salon car and drove off. They later abandoned one of them at the Lapset Road area and disappeared with…

Nairobi City County Government is set to implement a digital verification system to combat the increasing issue of people impersonating county staff and harassing city business owners and property developers. The upcoming Jitambulishe system will give business owners and property developers a simple way to verify the identity of Nairobi County staff before interacting with them. During a meeting with members of the Kenya Property Developers Association (KPDA) at City Hall, Governor Johnson Sakaja disclosed that the Jitambulishe verification system will enable property developers to verify county employees through a digital badge that is connected to their photo and identification.…

Nairobi’s Urban Renewal Project is set for parliamentary review as senators in the Senate Committee on Roads have agreed to dedicate three days in April to assess its progress across more than 10 estates in the city. The initiative, spearheaded by Governor Johnson Sakaja, focuses on redeveloping county-owned land through joint ventures with private investors distinct from the national government’s Affordable Housing Program, which is funded through the housing levy. Chairperson of the committee, Senator Eddy Oketch, emphasized the need for a comprehensive review of the project to ensure transparency and stakeholder engagement. “We shall hold a three-day retreat, bringing…

Protests have erupted in Turkey after authorities detained the mayor of Istanbul, just days before he was due to be selected as a presidential candidate. Ekrem Imamoglu, from the secular Republican People’s Party (CHP), is seen as one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s strongest political rivals. Prosecutors accused him of corruption and aiding a terrorist group, calling him a “criminal organisation leader suspect”. Police detained 100 people – including other politicians, journalists and businessmen – as part of the investigation, and the Istanbul governor’s office has imposed four days of restrictions in the city. Imamoglu said online “the will of…

More than 2,000 newly released documents related to the investigation into President John F Kennedy’s assassination are notable not just for what they contain – but for what is omitted. As many experts expected, this latest release by the Trump administration does not answer all lingering questions about one of the turning points in American history – the 1963 slaying of Kennedy in Dallas. Nor do they fundamentally shift the understanding of what happened that day. There is no ‘smoking gun’. But this latest batch does include documents that are now mostly or fully unredacted – original material is included…

A Ugandan man was arrested after he told a motorist who had offered him a lift to Nairobi he killed his wife in a domestic quarrel in Uganda. He said the incident happened in Lwakhakha village, which borders Kenya and Uganda. The 42-year-old man had flagged down a motorist on Monday night in Gilgil area on the Nairobi-Nakuru highway and sought to be offered a lift to Nairobi. Midway between Gilgil and Naivasha he opened up to the driver saying he had killed his wife and was on the run to Nairobi. Stunned by the confessions, the driver drove to…