Democratic Party (DP) leader Justin Muturi has appealed to the government to immediately evacuate all Kenyans stranded in the Middle East amid escalating missile and aerial bombardments.
Muturi warned that an estimated 500,000 Kenyans living and working in the conflict-prone region are facing the real threat of annihilation.
He stated that the nation cannot afford to watch its citizens perish in foreign lands due to policy failures at home.
He faulted the government’s labour export strategy as 'reckless and dangerously shortsighted', arguing that it has exposed vulnerable Kenyans to grave risks without sufficient protection mechanisms.
“It would be a national disgrace to receive our people in body bags because we failed to create jobs at home,” Muturi said, urging swift diplomatic and logistical action to secure the safe return of affected citizens.
He called for immediate intervention, coordinated evacuation plans, and a comprehensive review of the country’s foreign labour policies to safeguard Kenyan lives and uphold national dignity.
Kenya is yet to announce any contingency plans to evacuate its citizens working or staying in any of the affected countries, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, instead only issuing an advisory to remain vigilant.
In a statement on Sunday, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi warned of heightened risks after attacks by Israeli and US forces on Iran on Saturday morning and subsequent retaliatory attacks by Iran on Israel and US bases in some Gulf states.
"All Kenyan citizens in Iran, Israel, Qatar, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq and surrounding areas are advised to remain alert and monitor official communication from host governments regarding travel and safety updates," Mudavadi said.
He advised citizens to “exercise extreme caution and avoid non-essential movement, especially near high-risk areas such as military facilities and crowded public spaces.”
The war escalated on Sunday night as Israel extended its aerial bombardment to Beirut, Lebanon after Hezbollah fired rockets to Isreal, while Iran continued attacking several Gulf States in retaliatory attacks by the US-Israel.
Cyprus became the first European Country to announce it had been targeted by an Iranian missile attack on the United Kingdom’s Akrotiri base in Cyprus, as the conflict threatens to escalate from regional to international.
The base at Aktokiri is the UK’s main military facility for its operations in the Middle East, and the raid comes after Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his country had agreed to a US request to use the UK’s bases for attacks on Iran.
Comments 0
Sign in to join the conversation
Sign In Create AccountNo comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!