FACT CHECK: Does This Photo Show Kenyans In Nairobi Protesting In Solidarity With Nigerians In June 2021?
An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows people in Nairobi, Kenya, demonstrating on June 12 in solidarity with Nigerians.
Verdict: False
The photo actually shows an October 2020 protest in Nigeria, not Kenya.
Fact Check:
On June 12, protests in response to militant violence and security issues took place in Nigeria against President Muhammadu Buhari’s government, which had banned Twitter usage in the country the previous week, Reuters reported. The June 12 public holiday of Democracy Day marks democracy being reestablished in Nigeria, according to the Daily Express.
The image in the Facebook post shows a large crowd of people holding Nigerian flags in the air. The post’s caption alleges it shows “KENYANS standing with NIGERIANS during #June12thProtest in NAIROBI.” (RELATED: Did The Russian Embassy In Kenya Put Out This Press Release About Imported Sputnik V Vaccines?)
Contrary to this claim, the picture doesn’t show a protest in Kenya and predates the June 12 demonstrations in Nigeria. The photo was published in an Oct. 21, 2020 article by the Nigerian news outlet Premium Times discussing the protest movement in Nigeria to abolish the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) police unit and to address police brutality. In the Premium Times article, it is attributed to Premium Times reporter Kabir Yusuf.
Protests against SARS, which was accused of extrajudicial killings and other abusive action, took place in Nigeria in October 2020, The Guardian reported. The corresponding hashtag #EndSARS trended on Twitter at the time, according to BBC News.
Buhari announced on Twitter Oct. 11 last year that the SARS unit would be disbanded. Demonstrations against police brutality continued in Nigeria after the announcement, Al Jazeera reported.