Niece of Kenyan woman ‘murdered by British soldier’ calls on King to act during visit
The niece of a Kenyan woman allegedly murdered by one or more British soldiers has called on the King to act on her case as he visits the African country.
Agnes Wanjiru went missing in her hometown of Nanyuki in 2012 and two months later her body was found in a septic tank of a hotel.
She had stab wounds to her abdomen and a 2019 inquest concluded she was murdered by one or more British soldiers.
Before the King and Queen arrived in Kenya for the start of their five-day state visit to Kenya on Monday, Ms Wanjiru’s 19-year-old niece Esther Njoki wrote the King a letter calling on him to help bring about justice and closure.
Ms Njoki, who lives in an informal settlement in Nanyuki, close to the British Army Training Unit (BATUK) base in the Nyati barracks, also called on the King to visit her family – herself, her mother (who is Ms Wanjiru’s sister Rose), her cousin Stacy, and Ms Wanjiru’s surviving daughter – who was just five months old when her mother was killed.
She wrote in a letter to the monarch: “Your Majesty, we ask that you come to our aid by bringing attention and urgency to the case of Agnes Wanjiru’s murder.
“Please let not Agnes’s daughter Stacey grow up in a world where it seems that justice is elusive not only for the poor but also for people that look like her.”
Far from a symbolic gesture, Ms Njoki’s letter is a significant move that demands actions from the commander-in-chief of the British crown forces.
The British government maintains that the jurisdiction for the investigation lies with the Kenya Police Service. The inquest found that there were signs of a potential cover-up and limited investigations in the immediate aftermath.
But 11 years on, the men accused of her murder are still walking free.
While Buckingham Palace has said that the royal visit will acknowledge “painful aspects of the UK and Kenya’s shared history”, the King and Queen have no scheduled plans to visit Nanyuki during their trip.
Rather than the £70mn BATUK facility in Nanyuki’s Nyati barracks, they will be shown a display of British-Kenyan defence collaboration in beach exercises at the Mtongwe Naval base in Mombasa.
The King and Queen view part of the Royal Collection relating to the Royal family’s connection to Kenya, during a reception at Buckingham Palace. Pic: AP
Other events in Kenya have also enflamed discontent about the country’s post-colonial relationship with Britain.
A 2021 fire on a British army training site in Lolldaiga, Laikipia moved 5,000 complainants to say it impacted their health, livestock and environment.
The British High Commission in Kenya told Sky News that “no property outside of the Lolldaiga Hills Ranch was damaged by the fire and no large animals were killed.”
That has not quelled protests and demands for compensation.
“There is a feeling that colonialism is still alive and well, and therefore the general feeling is that there needs to be a change,” says Kenyan political scientist, Professor Peter Kagwanga.
He adds: “Let us be clear that compensations have been done in a number of cases but there has not been unequivocal apologies or denunciation of what has happened.
“Therefore Kenyans feel that they are second-rate citizens, the so-called children of a lesser God compared to their British counterparts – and as a result, that is adding to the cumulative grievances against BATUK in Nanyuki.”
In the hours before the King and Queen’s arrival, the expression of these grievances is being stifled.
Kenyan authorities are shutting down protests in Nairobi and have blocked a news conference intended to air allegations of human rights and environmental abuses by British troops in the country.
Even as the grieving Esther links justice with the King’s visit, Kenyan authorities are practising public suppression just to ensure it happens without opposition.
Liverpool have won the Premier League title after a 5-1 victory over Tottenham at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s men did it in impressive style, turning over Spurs in a convincing win.
It was a rocky start for the Reds after Dominic Solanke put the north London side ahead.
However, fortunes quickly changed in the first half as Liverpool scored three times without a response.
Captain Virgil van Dijk (centre) celebrates. Pic: Reuters
Salah on his knees in celebration after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott (below) and Jarell Quansah celebrate after full-time. Pic: PA
Slot cheers after the full-time whistle. Pic: AP
In the second half, it took until the 63rd minute for Mohamed Salah to make it 4-1 before a fifth followed.
The Reds have won the title in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, and move level with fierce rivals Manchester United on 20 league championships.
But it makes them arguably the most successful English club ever as they have won more European Cup or Champions League titles.
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the final whistle: “It’s special and it’s something that we don’t take for granted. It’s amazing.
“A lot of emotions before the game, during the whole week, but we got the job done and we (are) truly deserved champions of England. (Liverpool is) the most beautiful club in the world and I think we deserve all of this. Let’s enjoy the next couple of weeks and let it sink in.”
Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas poses with a Premier League trophy cut out. Pic: Reuters
Manager Arne Slot and his team after the final whistle. Pic: AP
Slot took over last summer from Jurgen Klopp, who guided them to their previous and maiden Premier League title triumph in 2020, when the COVID-19 lockdown saw matches played behind closed doors.
He is the first Dutch manager to win the Premier League and the fifth man to do so in a debut campaign after Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Manuel Pellegrini, and Antonio Conte.
Speaking to Sky Sports he said: “They [the players] did an outstanding job today. The main job was to win. Everyone said we had got it already. But we had to make sure and we got over the line.”
Several players, including Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, and Mohamed Salah, played leading roles in both the 2025 and 2020 campaigns.
Van Dijk and Salah recently signed new contracts extending their careers at the club.
Mohamed Salah takes a selfie with fans after scouring the fourth Liverpool goal. Pic: AP
Fans at Anfield during the game. Pic: AP
Fans in the stands at Anfield before full-time. Pic: Reuters
Liverpool will have to wait until the final game of the season – at home to Crystal Palace on 25 May – to be presented with the Premier League trophy.
It will be the first time the club’s fans will have seen their side lift the top-flight title in person since 1990.
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Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
Read more:
Sky’s Beth Rigby running marathon in honour of ‘dearest friend’
Badenoch does not rule out local coalitions with Reform
Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
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