Kenya Court Orders Halt to US-Built Ebola Facility; US Pledges $13.5 Million in Aid

Kenya’s health minister told a court on or before 23 June 2026 that he had ordered preparations for a US-run Ebola quarantine facility to stop. The statement came after the High Court held Aden Duale in contempt on 22 June for permitting construction to proceed despite a stop-work order issued in May.

Lady Justice Patricia Nyaundi ruled that Duale knew the order required all work to cease yet allowed the project at the military base in Nanyuki to continue.

Duale will be sentenced on 24 June. The 50-bed isolation centre was intended for US citizens suspected of contracting Ebola during the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kenya has recorded no cases of the disease.

The DRC has reported more than 1,000 confirmed cases, and Uganda has recorded 20 cases, most imported from the DRC. The Congolese city of Bunia lies 780 km from Nanyuki. Protests against the centre in Nanyuki, 140 km north of Nairobi, resulted in three deaths, including 17-year-old schoolboy Sylvester Muigai Ndung'u.

Witnesses said he was shot in the head. Kenyan police told the BBC they are awaiting post-mortem results. Washington intends to provide $13.5 million in aid for Kenya's Ebola preparedness as part of a $112 million regional commitment.

The petition that led to the May stop-work order was filed by the Katiba Institute.