A Federal High Court in Kenya on Friday barred the East African country’s national police service from killing, abducting, harassing and detaining anti-Finance Bill protesters.

The court order followed a petition filed by Saitabao Ole Kanchory amid the Kenyan police’s brutal attack on anti-Finance Bill protesters.

“That pending inter partes hearing and determination of this application, the first and second respondents be and are hereby prohibited from committing any extrajudicial killings,” the court order reads in part. 

It added, “The first and second respondents be and are hereby prohibited from arrests, abductions, detentions, harassment, intimidation, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of persons protesting against the Finance Bill, 2024.”

Mr Kanchory, in his petition before the court, sued the Inspector General of Police, Japhet Koome, the Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki and the Attorney General Justin Muturi.

This comes amid waves of extrajudicial killings, abduction and arrest of citizens protesting the Finance Bill proposing the imposition of tax on cars, phones, bread, sanitary pads, and other commodities.

Since the protest broke out over a week ago, Kenyan police have shot dead about 25 protesters, abducting over 50 and injuring hundreds. 

After the protest against the tax hike bill turned bloody on Tuesday, President William Ruto, in a live broadcast, labelled the protest a “treasonous event.”

Prior to his broadcast, Aden Bare Duale, Kenya’s cabinet secretary for defence, deployed Kenyan Defence Forces to support police in quelling the demonstrations.

Lamenting the staggering number of casualties during the protest as a result of police clampdown and attacks, Amnesty International accused Mr Ruto of inciting massacre and deploying snipers to shoot down protesters.

The human rights organisation said Mr Ruto should be tried at the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.