No, viral video doesn't show arson attack on migrants' property in Kenya
IN SHORT: A video circulating online has been presented as evidence that Kenyans set fire to property belonging to migrants amid controversy over foreign small-scale traders. But the footage is from Uganda.
A video is circulating on Facebook with the claim that it shows Kenyans burning property belonging to migrants.
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The video, which started circulating online on 8 September 2026, has the caption: "Kenyans are burning cars and houses of foreign nationals in order to force them to leave."
The eight-second clip shows several vehicles engulfed in flames as people move around the scene. It emerged amid tensions in Kenya over the government's approach to migrants trading in the country.
On 2 September, Kenyan president William Ruto directed authorities to act against foreign-born people operating small retail businesses, saying such activities should primarily be left to Kenyans.
The directive prompted concern among some migrants. Hundreds of Burundians sought travel documents, while there were reports of threats and harassment against some traders. The government subsequently announced that the traders had 90 days to regularise their immigration status, work permits, business registration and licences.
Similar versions of the claim have also circulated on the social media platform X. But does the viral video show Kenyans setting migrants' property on fire?
Video from Uganda
Africa Check took keyframes from the video and ran them through a reverse image search using the video verification tool InVID-WeVerify. The search led us to posts published on X on 6 September.
A user named Gabriel Buule posted the video with the caption: "Earlier today in Kitemu, someone who was burning rubbish ended up burning cars."
According to his X profile, Buule is a Ugandan journalist who has worked with the Daily Monitor, a Ugandan newspaper.
Kitemu is a town in Wakiso District in Uganda.
We also found a longer version of the video, filmed from a different angle, whose caption also identified the location as Kitemu, and the vehicles in the footage bear Ugandan registration plates.
Another clue in the footage suggests that it is from Uganda. A voice can be heard speaking Luganda, a language widely spoken in Uganda.
There is no evidence to support the claim that the circulating video is from Kenya.
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