Kenyan president defends US Ebola quarantine center amid protests

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

Updated 2:45 AM CDT, June 2, 2026
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NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya’s president on Monday defended the establishment of an Ebola quarantine facility by the U.S., a move that led to protests despite a court order blocking the plan.

President William Ruto on Monday night said the U.S. had a long-standing partnership with Kenya on health matters and that the quarantine facility at Laikipia Air Base was one of 24 facilities that had been established in the event of an Ebola outbreak in the country.

Some Kenyans have opposed the Laikipia facility after the U.S. last week said no American Ebola patient would be allowed to return home and that patients would instead be quarantined at the facility in Kenya. The U.S. intends to commit $13 million to the partnership with Kenya.

The high court on Tuesday extended orders issued Friday suspending the construction of the facility and the arrival of foreign patients. The case had been filed by the Law Society of Kenya and a constitutional watchdog, Katiba Institute, who cited Kenya’s fragile health system as unable to handle foreign patients.


A protester holds up a placard during a demonstration against a proposed Ebola quarantine center to be established by the United States at Laikipia Air Base in Nanyuki, Kenya, Monday, June 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Kasuku)

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/kenya-us-ebola-quarantine-ruto-a44b252906e45ef19c41195961b5e2e3