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Africa Uncensored

“I Survived an Execution”: The Man They Couldn’t Kill | VOICES IN DARKNESS EP3

In Episode 3 of #VoicesInDarkness, we sit down with “Peter” to hear the chilling true story of a criminal encounter and a police standoff that should have been his end. Voices In Darkness is an Africa Uncensored docuseries produced by Elijah Kanyi. Behind every crime, there is a story left untold—until now. The post “I Survived an Execution”: The Man They Couldn’t Kill | VOICES IN DARKNESS EP3 appeared first on Africa Uncensored.

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Africa Uncensored

Myanmar Scam Compounds: Harrowing Tales of Trafficked East Africans

East Africa’s high unemployment level is pushing young people to the extreme where well organised individuals through fraudulent job advertisements and a promise for a better life are luring them to work in Myanmar, a South East Asian country that has been under military rule since 2021.On reaching Myanmar through various criminal syndicates, the workers are forced into armed, high-tech scam compounds run by rebels deep in the forests. The victims are trapped in debt and have to endure extreme physical violence as their masters’ push for results.For more than eight months, Africa Uncensored dug into the hidden reality of what happens when people are trafficked, exposing a pipeline that lures vulnerable individuals halfway across the world with promises of legitimate work. But what awaits them is far from what was promised.Their stories reveal not just the reality of trafficking, but the human cost of systems and governments that fail to protect their own people.In the bustling streets of Nairobi, thousands of young people chase the promise of a job and a better life. The Federation of Kenya Employers, a national umbrella body and the voice of employers in Kenya, says that each year, over one million young people enter the country’s job market, but jobs are few and far between. Youth unemployment among those aged 15 to 34 hovers at 67 percent. Two out of three young people are unemployed. The unemployment situation in neighbouring Uganda is similar as young people are left with no option but to scout for jobs abroad.This is how Malcom (not real name), a Ugandan and Kwamboka (not real name) a Kenyan ended up into slavery in the jungles of Myanmar, working for a multi-billion-dollar human trafficking and cyber fraud industry. They each give their accounts independently on how they ended up in the Myanmar jungles far from their homeland.31-year-old Kwamboka, a single mother of two, once dreamed of a better future for her daughters. She wanted to give them a chance at the life she never had. So, when an opportunity to work overseas surfaced, it felt like the break she had been waiting for.A family friend told her there was a job opportunity in Thailand and that she needed to be tipped for scouting for that job. Days later, the family friend took Kwamboka to an office along Ngara Street, Nairobi to meet a travel agent concerned.“I was introduced to a gentleman who mentioned he has jobs as a cleaner, secretary, and customer service. I responded that I would prefer to go with customer service, because it is less demanding,” Kwamboka said.She identifies the travel agent as John Njuguna. It is this Njuguna who handled her travel documents after she paid a processing fee.Within three weeks, everything was set for her to leave. Before she departed, she was introduced to Grace Eshiwani, the person who would become her main link to the supposed employers overseas.“Eshiwani instructed me to go to a cyber cafe where I did a live interview for typing” Kwomboka revealed, noting that it was Njuguna who introduced her to Eshiwani, who then guided her all the way to Bangkok.Before catching the flight to Thailand, Eshiwani coached Kwamboka on what to say if the immigration officers at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi questioned her.“Don’t tell him you’re going to work. Tell him you are going on vacation. In that ticket, there is a day to go and come back. Everything is in there,” Eshiwani’s message to Kwamboka read.“When we arrived in Bangkok, we met people who had our photos. Not one, not two. We were directed to the vehicle that was to ferry us, a BMW!” Kwamboka said. She now looked at a better life, a fresh start that would make her children back home live a better life.This excitement was short-lived as it spiralled into an 18-hour ordeal. Meanwhile Eshiwani was still in contact with Kwamboka through Telegram. He kept reassuring her that all was proceeding as planned.Disturbed, Kwamboka called Eshiwani to find out what was going on. He reassured her again that he was in Bangkok and that he was going to pick her.“They frisked us, they took our passports and phones, but they forgot to take one of my phones and directed me to the lady’s hostel. I had my phone, immediately I shared my location with Njuguna, my mum and a friend,” shared Kwamboka. “I texted them that this is the place where I am at, but it is not what I was expecting,” she said.Within minutes, soldiers came in, they started by slapping her, speaking a language she could not understand. One of the roommates told her that they wanted her phone. She handed it over.At the camp where Kwamboka was, Samuel Wakoli, a Kenyan and a father of three had arrived days earlier. Wakoli’s agents were the same as Kwamboka, Njuguna and Eshiwani. Wakoli had paid Ksh 170,000 in two installments as processing fee.This was not his first plan to leave Kenya. Wakoli had hoped to travel to Spain, but he could not afford the processing fee of Ksh 300,000. While still in Kenya, Njuguna advised Wakoli to first travel to Bangkok and work in a supermarket from where he will collect the money to take him to Spain.

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Associated Press

4 people killed and dozens injured in Kenya protests over record fuel prices

Protests have erupted in Nairobi as a nationwide public transport strike begins over rising fuel prices. (AP video shot by Andrew Kasuku)A man demonstrates near a fire during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)People strip parts from a burned-out vehicle during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Ngugi)A man walks past burning tyres during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)People protest during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)A protester gestures during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)Protests have erupted in Nairobi as a nationwide public transport strike begins over rising fuel prices. (AP video shot by Andrew Kasuku)A man demonstrates near a fire during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)A man demonstrates near a fire during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)People strip parts from a burned-out vehicle during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Ngugi)People strip parts from a burned-out vehicle during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Ngugi)A man walks past burning tyres during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)A man walks past burning tyres during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)People protest during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)People protest during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)A protester gestures during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)A protester gestures during a public transport strike over fuel prices in Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Four people died and over 30 others were injured when police clashed with protesters in Kenya’s capital on Monday as a nationwide public transport strike kicked off to protest record fuel prices.Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen also said 348 people were arrested and would be charged over their involvement in what he called violent illegal protests. He did not say how the four people were killed, but witnesses told local media that police in Nairobi had opened fire.Commuters were stranded in many suburbs and the city center was deserted as protesters burned tires on major roads and attacked motorists, setting at least two vehicles on fire.Kenya’s fuel prices hit a record high on Friday, with the diesel price increasing by 23.5% and gasoline by 8%. The government attributed the previous price increase to the Iran war and its effects on energy supplies, but it reduced taxes to lessen the shock for consumers.President William Ruto, who has been out of the country, did not comment on the new increase or the protests.The Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Friday said the increased prices would affect all commodities and services. It also noted that Kenya’s price hike from April to May was much higher than the rise in global oil prices: “This points to the continued role of domestic cost buildup.”Former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua, who joined the opposition after his impeachment in October 2024 over corruption allegations, blamed the sharp rise on corrupt businesspeople who want to increase profit margins.He compared Kenya’s fuel prices to those in neighboring landlocked countries that rely on Kenyan ports for importation of fuel, such as Uganda, where prices are lower.

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Associated Press

France woos Anglophone Africa at a summit in Kenya

French President Emmanuel Macron gave a telling off to a noisy audience during a presentation at the University of Nairobi. The event was part of the “Africa Forward: Inspire and Connect” business forum where he was also joined by his Kenyan counterpart, William Ruto.French President Emmanuel Macron joined legendary Kenyan marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge for an early morning jog in Nairobi on Monday.France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)French President Emmanuel Macron gave a telling off to a noisy audience during a presentation at the University of Nairobi. The event was part of the “Africa Forward: Inspire and Connect” business forum where he was also joined by his Kenyan counterpart, William Ruto.French President Emmanuel Macron joined legendary Kenyan marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge for an early morning jog in Nairobi on Monday.France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya’s President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)France’s President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session “Africa Forward, Creation in Motion” during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)NAIROI, Kenya (AP) — France is pitching what it says is a new model of partnership with African countries at a summit that begins Monday in Kenya as it completes a military withdrawal from West African countries that has been widely seen as marking declining influence on the continent.But Paris is expected to use the two-day Africa Forward Summit, which it is co-hosting, to push a new Africa policy that focuses more on English-speaking countries and offers what it calls a “partnership of equals.” Its new defense agreement with Kenya marks the direction it hopes to go.France has long maintained a policy of economic, political and military sway over its former colonies dubbed Françafrique, which included keeping thousands of troops in the region. But after years of criticism from leaders and opposition parties in those countries over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed approach, France has been forced to withdraw most of those troops.The summit — France’s first in an English-speaking African country — will be attended by more than 30 heads of state and government, including from Francophone countries. On his arrival Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said France may disagree with West African governments but “never disagrees with the people.”

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