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☆ Kenya braced for more anti-tax protests as citizens call for ‘total shutdown’
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Larry Madowo | Stephanie Busari | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Kenya is in the grip of nationwide protests against proposed tax hikes, culminating in a planned “total shutdown” of the country on Tuesday. The demonstrations, sparked by the Finance Bill 2024, have seen citizens rally under the banner of “7 Days of Rage,” as the nation faces more days of upheaval. President William Ruto has said he wants to have dialogue with the protesters and that he is “proud” of them. Amnesty International Kenya says it is investigating the whereabouts of up to 12 people who were “abducted in the middle of night” ahead of Tuesday’s planned protests. The list includes bloggers, content creators, human rights defenders, a doctor, and a parliamentary staffer, Amnesty Kenya executive director Irũngũ Houghton told CNN.

Persons: William Ruto, Tuesday’s, Irũngũ Houghton, Joe Biden, ”, Biden, Ruto Organizations: CNN —, Finance, CNN, Kenyan, NATO, White Locations: CNN — Kenya, Kenya

☆ Anti-Tax Riots Rock Kenya, as President Vows Crackdown on ‘Treasonous’ Protesters
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Abdi Latif Dahir | Declan Walsh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, and some broke into Parliament and briefly set fire to the entrance on Tuesday, after lawmakers approved tax increases that critics said would drive up the cost of living for millions. During the protests, the police fired tear gas and guns, plunging the capital into turmoil. At least five people were fatally shot and 31 others injured, according to Amnesty International and several prominent Kenyan civic organizations. The independent Kenya Human Rights Commission posted a video that showed police officers firing as protesters marched toward them. As tear gas wafted through the streets, some protesters climbed through the windows of Parliament after lawmakers voted 195 to 106 in favor of the tax bill on Tuesday, with supporters saying it would raise revenue for education and other essential services.

Persons: William Ruto, Ruto, ” Organizations: Amnesty International, Kenyan, Kenya Human Rights Locations: Kenya’s, Nairobi, Kenya

☆ Video shows protesters storm parliament in Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Samantha Lindell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

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Photographs and news agency reports showed protesters clashing in the streets of Kenyan capital Nairobi on Tuesday, as the African state passed a controversial finance bill set to raise national taxes. Kenya's Human Rights Commission on Tuesday shared a video of officers shooting at protesters, calling for accountability. At least 50 people were injured by gunfire during the latest demonstrations, Reuters reported, citing a local paramedic outside of the parliament. The news agency further said sections of the parliament building were set on fire, as the compound was stormed. Blood has already been shed in similar protests, after two people died in separate demonstrations held last week, the Associated Press reported.

Organizations: Kenyan, Rights, Reuters, CNBC, Kenyan Police Service, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Associated Press Locations: Nairobi, Kenya

☆ MrBeast Doubles Down on Cash Giveaways, Donates $200K for UBI Program
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Theron Mohamed | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewMrBeast became the most popular YouTuber on the planet by handing cash to strangers, so it's little wonder he's experimenting with universal basic income, known as UBI. MrBeast also announced a joint fundraiser with GiveDirectly to gather enough cash to give $1,000 to every household in a neighboring village. AdvertisementEarly findings from GiveDirectly's trial suggest that direct cash handouts boost household and business savings and support the financing of bigger projects. MrBeast is known for giving out cash to strangers, making UBI a natural extension of his brand. But the social media star also addressed questions about whether direct cash payments would be spent wisely.

Persons: —, Jimmy Donaldson, MrBeast, GiveDirectly, Jeff Cheatham, Ruth, Auma, Lokure, Willy Wonka Organizations: Service, Business, Beast, Universal Locations: Uganda, Africa, Kenya, Karamoja, Tiyan

☆ Kenya’s parliament has been set on fire as protesters storm the streets
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Jodi Upchurch | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Obama’s Half Sister Is Among Those Tear-Gassed During Protests in Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Abdi Latif Dahir | More About Abdi Latif Dahir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Auma Obama, an older half sister of former President Barack Obama, was tear-gassed on Tuesday while being interviewed live on CNN during protests in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital. The protests were against the passage of a finance bill that raises taxes on many basic goods. They are demonstrating with flags and banners.”Ms. Obama then began choking in a spreading cloud of tear gas lobbed by the police. “We are being tear-gassed.”Ms. Obama grew up in Kenya and returned there as a community activist after studying and living in Germany and the United Kingdom. Her foundation in Kenya, Sauti Kuu, or Powerful Voices, serves children and young people, particularly from urban slums and rural communities.

Persons: Auma Obama, Barack Obama, Obama, “, ”, “ Young, Ms, Sauti Organizations: CNN, Kenyan Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, Germany, United Kingdom

☆ Kenya Explodes in Violence as Protesters Breach the Parliament Building
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( The New York Times | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Kenya exploded in violence on Tuesday as demonstrators clashed with police officers in the streets and stormed the national Parliament building after lawmakers passed a bill to increase taxes. Columns of thick smoke poured out of the Parliament compound. Protesters furious about tax hikes included in the finance bill hurled rocks and blocked roads. The protests paralyzed Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, and images of demonstrators swarming the Parliament and getting inside the gated compound shocked the nation. More than 30 protesters were hurt and at least five were killed, according to several civic groups.

Locations: Kenya, Nairobi, Nakuru, Mombasa, Eldoret

☆ Live Updates: Casualties Reported as Police Fire on Protesters in Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Abdi Latif Dahir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

The police used live fire and tear gas on protesters who marched on the Parliament building in an attempt to stop a vote on a contentious finance bill. The police used tear gas in an attempt to keep the protesters from approaching Parliament, and the sound of live fire rang out. Before Tuesday’s demonstration, several activists who are prominent critics of the bill were abducted, according to the Law Society of Kenya. But protesters have denounced other taxes, including on imported goods, and have urged the government to abandon the draft legislation. Image President William Ruto promised to be a champion of the poor, but critics say his administration has been marred by extravagant spending.

Persons: Faith Odhiambo, Odhiambo, Martha Koome, ”, Kasmuel McOure, William Ruto, Urs Flueeler, Ruto, Instagram, Mike, “, Kimani Ichung’wah, It’s, Anita Barasa, McOure, Mr Organizations: Amnesty International, Law Society of Kenya, Mr, Kenyan, Observers, KFC, Protesters Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, East, reneging, ”

☆ Foreign Police Officers Land on the Ground in Haiti
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Frances Robles | Abdi Latif Dahir | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Foreign law enforcement officers began arriving in Haiti on Tuesday, more than year and a half after the prime minister there issued a plea to other countries for help to stop the rampant gang violence that has upended the Caribbean nation. Footage shared on social media showed dozens of armed men in military fatigues filing out of a Kenya Airways plane at Haiti’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport in the capital, Port-au-Prince. The officers are part of a deployment of police officers from eight nations who will fan out across the capital in an effort to wrest control of the city from dozens of armed groups that have attacked police stations, freed prisoners and killed with impunity. Since the appeal for international help went out in October 2022, more than 7,500 people have been killed by violence — more than 2,500 people so far this year alone, the United Nations said.

Persons: Haiti’s Toussaint Organizations: Kenya Airways, United Nations Locations: Haiti, Caribbean, Port

☆ Video shows protestors storm parliament in Kenya
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Samantha Lindell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Protests in Kenya Over Tax Bill: What to Know
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Eve Sampson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The sting of tear gas, the crack of live bullets and images of wounded people sprawled across the ground accompanied mass protests Tuesday in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, after Parliament passed a controversial bill raising taxes, despite criticism that it would intensify economic desperation. At least five people died from gunshot wounds, civic groups said, and crowds breached the Parliament amid plumes of smoke as days of protests against the tax bill ended with police and protesters clashing. Typically a regional bastion of economic security, Kenya has a population of over 54 million. Here is what we know about the contentious legislation that set off Tuesday’s clashes. What will the tax bill do?

Organizations: Kenyan Locations: Nairobi, Kenya

☆ A millennial who switched from working on oil rigs to wind turbines says he's been promoted faster in renewable energy
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

He completed several years of training before heading off to work on offshore oil rigs. Moray West Offshore Wind Farm – Ocean WindsHe made the jump at a good time. Moray West Offshore Wind Farm — Ocean Winds. Mitchell said he'd been able to advance his career in the wind industry a lot faster than in oil and gas. "With offshore wind, there's always new sites going up, and they need so much personnel.

Persons: Shaun Mitchell, Halliburton, Shaun Mitchell wasn't, Mitchell, You'd, you'd, Vestas, Engie that's, He's, it's, he'd, It's Organizations: Service, Halliburton, North East Scotland College, Bloomberg, EDP Renewables, Engie Locations: Scotland, Thailand , New Zealand, Australia, Sydney, Aberdeen, Aberdeen Bay, Moray, Scotland —, China, Britain, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, India, Japan, Kenya, South Korea, Vestas

☆ Kenya Protests Are a Blow to Biden’s Embrace of President Ruto
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-25 | by ( Declan Walsh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The street turmoil that swept Kenya’s capital on Tuesday represented a blow to the Biden administration’s tight embrace of President William Ruto, a strong U.S. ally on a continent where American influence is rapidly waning. Just a day earlier, President Biden had formally named Kenya a major non-NATO ally, and Mr. Ruto had seen off a first group of 400 Kenyan police officers headed to Haiti on a contentious security mission that is largely financed by the United States. At the White House, the Kenyan leader was feted with a state dinner that included celebrity guests and former President Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan. For Mr. Ruto, the state visit was the high point of a globe-trotting presidency. He has visited dozens of countries since being declared the winner of a fiercely contested presidential election in August 2022.

Persons: William Ruto, Biden, Ruto, Barack Obama Organizations: Biden, Kenyan, NATO, White Locations: U.S, Kenya, NATO, Haiti, United States, Washington, Africa, Russia, China

☆ The fastest-growing career in the US is in wind power. Here's what employees make, what it's like, and how to land a job.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-24 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Federal data indicates wind-turbine technician is the fastest-growing job in the US. He started as an intern in 2017 before becoming a wind technician and then advancing over the past seven years. Federal data indicates wind-turbine technician is the fastest-growing job in the US, alongside nurse practitioner. Offshore wind technicians can expect to earn an extra 30% to 40% compared to onshore workers. Wind technicians in the early stages of their careers might do scheduled maintenance and cleaning.

Persons: —, Dakota Carter, I've, Carter, Jerry Jones, Harry Willats, Willats, It's Organizations: Service, EDP Renewables, Renewables, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Industry, International Energy Agency, Darwin Recruitment, Siemens Gamesa, GE, Robert Morris University in, EDP, Technicians Locations: Delavan , Illinois, America, Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Japan, Kenya, South Korea, Illinois, Texas, New Mexico , Kansas, Colorado, New York, Massachusetts, Robert Morris University in Illinois

☆ Kenya: Concerns over missing protesters as country erupts in tax hike demonstrations
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-24 | by ( Larry Madowo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Concerns are mounting in Kenya as reports emerge of protesters going missing amid nationwide demonstrations against proposed tax increases in the Finance Bill 2024. The protest movement has gained significant traction through social media, where organizers have called on all Kenyans to participate in the nationwide strike. The country’s interior minister has warned that demonstrations must end by sunset or 6.30 p.m local time, whichever is earlier. Kindami did not respond to concerns about a few prominent social media users who have been reported missing in recent days. The Law Society of Kenya’s President, Faith Odhiambo, described the incident as an abduction and accused intelligence officers of misconduct.

Persons: Gen Z, ”, Kithure Kindami, ” Kindami, Faith Odhiambo, Odhiambo, Babu Owino, “ Organizations: CNN, Law Society of Kenya’s, Law Society of Kenya, National Assembly Locations: Kenya, ”, Kenya’s, Nairobi, Kindami, policymaking

☆ Kenya investigating death of protester shot and killed by police officer
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-21 | by ( Duarte Mendonca | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Kenya’s independent policing review body has launched an investigation into the death of a protester who was shot during the mass anti-tax demonstrations in the capital Nairobi on Thursday. The incident has sparked widespread outrage and intensified scrutiny of police actions amid the escalating protests. The man named by authorities as Rex Masai was present at one of many protests against a controversial finance bill going through parliament, and was allegedly shot with live ammunition by a police officer. Earlier in the week, mass arrests were recorded in Nairobi, with over 200 people detained by police, according to civil society groups. “The Authority has this morning launched investigations into the fatal shooting and our investigation team has since established contact with the family of Mr. Masai,” the IPOA statement said.

Persons: Rex Masai, Mr, ”, Masai, IPOA, “ Organizations: CNN Locations: Nairobi

CNN —Violent clashes between police and protestors have broken out in Nairobi, Kenya on Thursday as a government vote on a controversial finance bill gets underway. Parliament has been sealed off since Thursday morning with roads around it blocked as lawmakers debate the Finance Bill inside. Police are breaking up peaceful protesters with tear gas and water cannons around the city center in Nairobi. Festo Lang/CNNCNN has met protesters as young as 18 who say they’re fighting for their future. Look at the tears of the women in the country of Kenya,” one young man told CNN’s Larry Madowo.

Persons: Anger, Festo Lang, Ruto, ”, CNN’s Larry Madowo, Young Organizations: CNN, Police, CNN CNN Locations: Nairobi, Kenya, East

☆ Kenya: Hundreds arrested as protests flare over tax hikes
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-19 | by ( Nimi Princewill | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Protests have erupted in parts of Kenya, with hundreds detained by police as citizens rejected planned tax hikes in the East African nation already grappling with escalating living costs. Civil society groups said that at least 283 people have been arrested since Tuesday as protests flared over the proposed hikes. Among the taxes suspended was a 16% value-added tax on bread and a 2.5% tax on motor vehicles, a statement from Kenya’s presidency said. Amnesty International’s Kenya office said it was “deeply outraged by the arbitrary arrest of peaceful protestors” in Nairobi on Tuesday. An alliance of civil society groups called for the unconditional release of detained protesters, which it said included journalists.

Persons: Kenyan John Wills Njoroge, It’s, “, ” Organizations: CNN, Kenyan, NTV, Kenyan Police Service, ” CNN Locations: Kenya, East, Nairobi, Mombassa, Mombasa, Kenya’s

☆ Kenyan government scraps elements of controversial tax bill amid protests
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-18 | by ( Caitlin Danaher | Larry Madowo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The Kenyan government has scrapped some tax increases that were initially included in its controversial finance bill after people took to the streets in protest on Tuesday. “When we started the public participation in the finance bill of 2024, we did make a promise that public participation would not be an exercise in futility. We have listened to the view of Kenyans,” Kimani said in a speech outside the State House in Nairobi. Changes to the finance bill were driven by a “need to protect Kenyans from increased cost of living,” Kimani said. Kenyan police officers walk away from a street covered in tear gas during a demonstration against tax hikes in downtown Nairobi on June 18, 2024.

Persons: Kuria Kimani, ” Kimani, Luis Tato, William Ruto, “, ”, ” Ruto, Faith Odhiambo, ” Odhiambo Organizations: CNN, Kenyan, Kenya’s Finance, National Planning, Getty, State, Defenders Coalition, National Police, ” Police, Central Police Station, Kenya’s Law, National Police Service Locations: Nairobi, AFP, Kenya, National Police Service Kenya

☆ Scientists finally think they know why giraffe necks are so long
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Jessica Orwig | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In the 19th century, Charles Darwin and Jean Baptiste Lamarck suggested that giraffes evolved long necks to help them snatch leaves on trees. A later theory usurped Darwin and Lamarck's, suggesting that male giraffes evolved long necks to fight and compete for female mates. "I realized that the important question was, 'Do males have proportionally longer necks compared to the rest of their body?'" Cavener said this may be the first study to suggest that females, not males, are the reason for giraffes' long necks. That's important not only for understanding giraffe evolution but how male and female giraffes behave differently, which could help with conservation efforts.

Persons: —, Charles Darwin, Jean Baptiste Lamarck, Darwin, Lamarck, Douglas Cavener, wasn't, Cavener, Art Wolfe, Zoe Raw, Raw Organizations: Service, Business, Biology, Penn State, International Union for Conservation Locations: Tanzania, Kenya, East Africa, Darwin, bushmeat

☆ Kenya confronts trail of rape accusations and abandoned children against UK soldiers
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Larry Madowo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Marian is among a group of mixed-race children whose mothers say they were conceived after rape by British soldiers training in Kenya. Mixed-race children continue to be born in the remote villages where the British Army trains its soldiers in Kenya. One of the more contentious accusations against British soldiers involves the case of Agnes Wanjiru. Allegations of rape and other crimes, including murder, by British soldiers deployed there date back to the 1950s. The UK investigators did not conduct DNA tests on any of the 69 mixed-race children alleged to have been born from rape by British soldiers.

Persons: Marian Pannalossy, “, ”, You’re, ’ ” Marian, Marian, Lydia Juma, ” Juma, ’ Marian, ’, Generica, Nicole, Namoru, Festo Lang, CNN Juma, BATUK, Agnes Wanjiru, hasn’t, Wanjiru’s, King, Marian Mutugi, Martyn Day, Ntoyie Lenkanan, CNN “, Saitet, nosedived, Kelvin Kubai, ” Kubai, Generica Namoru, “ I’m, It’s, “ It’s, We’re, ” Mutugi Organizations: Kenya CNN, CNN, British Army, British Army Training Unit, Defense, Intelligence, Foreign Relations, National, British, Kenyan, British High Commission, The Defense, Kenya National Commission, Human Rights, Britain’s Ministry of Defense, Royal Military Police, Reconciliation, Human Rights Commission Locations: Archer’s, Kenya, Archer’s Post, Nairobi, British, Samburu, Nanyuki, Britain, East, Laikipia, London, DolDol

☆ Kenya investigates allegations accusing British soldiers of sexual assault
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Angelica Beltran | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Ernest Shackleton’s Quest shipwreck has finally been found
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-15 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Editor’s note: A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew of 27 men set off aboard the HMS Endurance in 1914. A search expedition found the HMS Endurance wreck in 2022, and now, another part of Shackleton’s legacy has been recovered. Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesAn international team of experts using sonar has located the exploration ship Quest, once captained by Shackleton, off the coast of Canada. — A botanist spotted a tiny plant species new to science growing in an unlikely place on the slopes of the Andes.

Persons: Sir Ernest Shackleton, Shackleton, Freeman Dyson, Dyson, George Wittemyer, ”, Mickey Pardo, ritualistically, Chichén Itzá, “, Adomas Valantinas, Ashley Strickland, Katie Hunt Organizations: CNN, HMS, Quest, Central Press, Hulton, Cornell University, Olympus, ESA, Brown University, NASA, CNN Space, Science Locations: Antarctica, South Georgia, Canada, Kenya, Chichén, Yucatán, Everest, England, Australia

☆ El Niño is dead. Here’s what to expect in the coming months
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-13 | by ( Mary Gilbert | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —El Niño has officially come to an end and the ripples from its demise will shake up weather around the globe. With El Niño out of the spotlight, its opposite is preparing to take center stage later this summer: La Niña. For now, neither La Niña nor El Niño are present and a so-called neutral phase has begun, according to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center. Here’s what a summer without El Niño and a budding La Niña could have in store. Luis Tato/AFP/Getty ImagesCalifornia and the western US also typically pick up more rain during El Niño, especially over the winter months.

Persons: CNN — El Niño, Niño, El Niño, Marcio Jose Sanchez, Luis Tato, Laura Paddison Organizations: CNN, El, Getty Images Locations: West, El, Beverly Crest, Los Angeles, California, South America, Africa, Africa’s, Kenya, Garissa, AFP, Getty Images California, US, West Coast

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