Kenya: Disregard Fake Standard Newspaper Front Page Headlined 'Occupy JKIA' Amid Anti-Government Protests in Kenya

1 August 2024
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Tess Wandia

Disregard fake Standard newspaper front page headlined 'Occupy JKIA' amid anti-government protests in Kenya

IN SHORT: A front page allegedly from Kenya's Standard newspaper is circulating on social media with the headline "Occupy JKIA". But it has been manipulated.

An image of what appears to be the front page of the Standard, a Kenyan newspaper with national reach, has been circulating on social media since July 2024.

The front page is dated 23 July 2024 with the headline: "Occupy JKIA."

It features a photo of Kenyan president William Ruto and a list of eight protest hotspots, including "JKIA entrances and terminals".

JKIA or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is Kenya's largest international airport, located in the capital Nairobi.

A section of the strapline reads: "Who will budge? President William Ruto has said he has had enough of the protests but the youth are relentless he will have to listen to what they have to say. Today, Nairobi is expected to be hard hit by the demonstrations with the youth planning to barricade major roads and occupy JKIA."

Since June 2024, Kenyans have consistently held weekly demonstrations to protest against bad governance, corruption and mismanagement of public funds by government officials. On 23 July, demonstrators threatened to occupy the airport as part of the planned protests.

The front page has also been posted here and here.

But is it authentic? We checked.

Front page edited

Africa Check searched the Standard newspaper archives for the 23 July front page. We confirmed that the image of the front page circulating on social media was not the same as the one in the archive.

The circulating front page had been edited. The authentic front page of 23 July has the headline "Moment of truth", not "Occupy JKIA".

The front page circulating on social media is fake and should be disregarded.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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