The image was taken in France on 2 June 2016.
A post shared on X (formerly Twitter) claiming to show a Kenyan protester hitting a teargas canister using a tennis racket during the 18 June 2024 anti-Finance Bill demonstrations is FALSE.
The attached image is of a person in a black hoodie, hat, shades, gas mask, dark green trousers, and blue shoes, holding a tennis racket, poised to hit a teargas canister mid-air.
The image, shared on 18 June 2024, is accompanied by the text, “Kenyan Gen Z Captain returning a teargas canister back to the sender! When it rains, it pours. #RejectFinanceBill2024”.
But was the image captured during Kenya’s anti-Finance Bill 2024 demonstrations on 18 June 2024?
A Google reverse search shows that the photo was captured in Nantes, France, during protests against the government’s proposed labour law reforms on 2 June 2016. The photo is credited to Stephane Mahe from Reuters.
The photo was also published here and here.
A section of Kenyans, described by the media as young people, protested against the 2024 Finance Bill in Nairobi on 18 June 2024. The demonstrations continued on 19 and 20 June, with protesters calling the bill “punitive.” Anti-riot police dispersed crowds with teargas and water cannons. The protests were marked with casualties, injuries, and arrests.
PesaCheck has looked into a post shared on X claiming to show a photo of a Kenyan protester hitting a teargas canister using a tennis racket during the 18 June 2024 anti-Finance Bill demonstrations and found it to be FALSE.
This post was first published on the PesaCheck website. It is part of an ongoing series of PesaCheck fact-checks examining content marked as potential misinformation on Facebook and other social media platforms.
By partnering with Facebook and similar social media platforms, third-party fact-checking organisations like PesaCheck are helping to sort fact from fiction. They do this by giving the public deeper insight and context to posts they see in their social media feeds.
