Chaos at Raila Odinga’s Public Viewing as Kenyan Police Fire Tear Gas at Thousands of Mourners

Tension erupted in Nairobi on Thursday as Kenyan police fired tear gas at thousands of mourners during a public viewing of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s body, just a day after his death in India at age 80.

The massive crowd, which had earlier escorted Odinga’s coffin on foot for nearly 18 miles (29 kilometers) from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to a 60,000-capacity stadium, overwhelmed security officials after breaching the presidential pavilion. Police responded with tear gas, triggering panic and a stampede at the gates as mourners fled in confusion. Several people were reportedly injured.

Odinga’s body arrived in Nairobi aboard a chartered aircraft to a ceremonial water cannon salute before being placed in a military vehicle for public viewing. However, plans for a restricted ceremonial reception quickly unraveled when emotional supporters forced their way into the airport area, demanding to see the man they affectionately called “Baba” — a Kiswahili term for father.

“We loved Baba so much. He was the defender of the people,” said Beatrice Adala, one of the mourners who walked alongside the military procession waving green twigs in tribute.

Odinga, a veteran opposition leader and democracy advocate, died on Wednesday after collapsing during a morning walk in Kerala, India. Efforts to revive him at a local hospital were unsuccessful.

Kenyan President William Ruto, who once opposed Odinga before forming a political alliance with him, hailed the late statesman as “a patriot of uncommon courage, a pan-Africanist, and a unifier who sought peace above power and self-gain.”

The government has declared Friday a public holiday to honor Odinga, with a national service planned at a Nairobi stadium. Another viewing will be held Saturday in Kisumu County before his burial on Sunday at his ancestral home in Bondo, western Kenya — in line with his wish for a quick burial within 72 hours.

Odinga, a central figure in Kenya’s democratic struggle for decades, is being mourned across the continent as one of Africa’s enduring champions of reform, justice, and unity.