Thousands gather in Nairobi to pay respects to veteran opposition leader, prompting chaotic scenes at stadium
Four people have been killed in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, after security forces fired shots and teargas to disperse huge crowds at a stadium where the body of the opposition leader Raila Odinga was lying in state.
Odinga, a major figure in Kenyan politics for decades who was once a political prisoner and ran unsuccessfully for president five times, died on Wednesday aged 80 in India, where he had been receiving medical treatment.
With thousands of his supporters on the streets from early morning, chaos erupted when a huge crowd breached a gate at Nairobi’s main stadium, prompting soldiers to fire in the air, a Reuters witness said.
A police source told Reuters that two people were shot dead at the stadium. KTN News and Citizen TV later said the death toll had increased to four, with scores injured. After security forces fired shots, police used teargas to disperse thousands of mourners, the two broadcasters reported, leaving the stadium deserted.
