Attached to this post on X is a video purportedly showing Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) officers leaving Allsops Camp, heading to Nairobi’s CBD during the June 25, 2025, protests.
Background
June 25, 2024, is a date that will remain etched in Kenya’s history. After weeks of digital activism, Kenyans took to the streets to protest the controversial Finance Bill 2024 and widespread corruption. But as protests unfolded, Members of Parliament defied public outcry and voted in favor of the bill. That decision proved to be the final straw. Protesters marched to Parliament, but what followed was deadly. Police opened fire with live ammunition as MPs fled the chambers. Twenty-two people were killed during the June 25, 2024, protests.
The tragedy didn’t end there. In the days that followed, reports of enforced disappearances, kidnappings, and arbitrary arrests surfaced. In total, in 2024, at least 104 more people were killed in police-related incidents, and 55 others went missing, allegedly at the hands of security forces.
On June 25, 2025, Kenyans returned to the streets, not only to protest ongoing injustices but also to remember the lives lost during and after the 2024 demonstrations. Among the most recent victims were Albert Ojwang’ and Boniface Kariuki, an unarmed mask vendor shot dead during anti-police brutality protests on June 17, 2025. Tragically, the cycle repeated itself. Peaceful demonstrators were once again met with excessive force. At least three more lives were lost and hundreds were injured in clashes with the police.
The Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) is a specialized unit of the Administration Police in Kenya tasked with conducting direct action and tactical operations, managing public order, and responding swiftly to national emergencies, disasters, and conflicts. It has previously been deployed in response to a surge in crime in Nairobi in 2022. The RDU is routinely deployed during periods of unrest in part due to their specialised training.
Verification
A Google reverse image search shows that this image is actually from June 27, 2024, as seen here, here, and here. It is unrelated to the June 25, 2025, protests.
Additionally, one of the structures in the video is a pedestrian bridge on Lang’ata Road at Uhuru Gardens, and not Thika Road as claimed. The camera also pans to show structures inside the Uhuru Gardens complex.
The barrier in the middle of the road is also consistent with the divider on the median along Lang’ata Road.
Verdict
Claims that the video shows Rapid Deployment Unit (RDU) officers leaving Allsops Camp, heading to Nairobi’s CBD during the June 25, 2025, protests are FALSE.
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