NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — For the first time, Britain’s government has agreed to pay out millions in pounds to Kenyans to settle a civil lawsuit after its military forces had their legal immunity in Kenya lifted.
The payout of 2.9 million British pounds ($3.9 million) to settle damages for a wildfire accidentally started by British soldiers in Kenya in 2021 follows a landmark ruling that stripped the U.K. government and British Army of immunity from Kenyan civil suits.
That has opened a new chapter in accountability for foreign militaries’ actions on Kenyan soil, and the British military deployment in the country faces a series of controversies over the conduct of its personnel both in Kenyan and U.K. courts.
Damage would take decades to restore
Over 7,700 Kenyans and an environmental lobby group had filed a class-action suit before the Kenyan Environment and Land Court, accusing the British Army Training Unit in Kenya of destroying more than 12,000 acres of the Lolldaiga Hills in central Kenya 2021.
The British government admitted that the fire had been started accidentally by a soldier’s kerosene stove. The blaze took almost two weeks to put out and caused the death of one person and an unspecified number of animals.
Locals said toxic fumes from the fire caused health issues, including respiratory complications and damaged eyesight. An environmental assessment presented before court showed that the fire caused extensive damage that would take between 30 and 50 years to tackle.
The British government had argued that it had immunity from trial in Kenyan courts, but that was thrown out in a landmark ruling by High Court Judge Kossy Bor, who stated that the U.K. lost absolute immunity against trial in local courts when it entered into a defense treaty with Kenya.
It was the first time Kenyan courts were able to try civil claims against British military forces.
Kelvin Kubai, a Lolldaiga community legal representative, lauded the settlement, saying it sets a precedent for future claims and redefines diplomatic and military accountability in host countries.