Victims of the 1998 Nairobi U.S. Embassy bombing have moved to the Court of Appeal seeking justice after the High Court dismissed their case against the State. The victims, represented by Legal Advice Centre T/A Kituo Cha Sheria, are pursuing compensation for loss of life, severe injuries and the trauma they have endured for more than two decades since the devastating attack.
In the earlier decision, Lawrence Mugambi dismissed the case, holding that the State could not be held liable for failing to prevent the bombing. The court faulted the evidentiary basis of the petition, observing that the reports relied upon were not supported by sworn affidavits from their authors. Justice Mugambi further noted that no tangible proof had been presented to show that Kenyan authorities had received actionable intelligence prior to the attack and failed to respond. The judge also declined to grant orders seeking a declaration of State responsibility or to compel the President to appoint a commission of inquiry, ruling that such actions fall within the mandate of the Executive and not the judiciary.
Dissatisfied with that ruling, the victims have now lodged an appeal arguing that the High Court made several legal and factual errors.
In their appeal, they contend that the State either had actual knowledge or ought to have known about the existence of active terrorist cells and the planning of the 1998 attack. They cite intelligence reports from the U.S. Embassy, previous police raids on suspects and other credible information which they say should have alerted authorities to the imminent threat.
According to the appellants, despite this information, the authorities failed to take the necessary steps to prevent or mitigate the attack. The victims further argue that the High Court overlooked the State’s legal duty to protect human life under the Constitution and international law. They maintain that once harm occurs, victims are entitled to reparations, and that the State could subsequently pursue recovery from third parties who may have supported or facilitated the attack.
Lawyers acting for the victims also told the appellate court that the government had previously acknowledged an obligation to compensate the victims, creating what they describe as a legitimate expectation of reparation. They argue that the High Court did not fully consider the psychological, physical and economic suffering endured by the victims and their families since the bombing more than two decades ago.
The August 7, 1998 bombing of the United States Embassy in Nairobi remains one of the deadliest terrorist attacks on Kenyan soil. The suicide attack killed at least 213 people, most of them Kenyans, and left more than 4,000 others injured.
A near-simultaneous bombing targeting the US Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killed 11 people. The attacks were later claimed by the Al Qaeda terror network and marked a turning point in global counter-terrorism efforts, as well as Kenya’s own security and anti-terrorism framework.
