US Ebola Quarantine Facility Plan Halted by Kenyan Court

On May 28, 2026 the United States announced a plan to build a 50‑bed Ebola quarantine and treatment centre for American citizens exposed to the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The facility was to be located at Laikipia Military Airbase, about 125 miles northwest of Nairobi, with a US commitment of $13.5 million and the deployment of more than 30 US Public Health Service members to oversee construction.

Kenyan courts intervened quickly: a May 29 order blocked the project, and on June 23 Health Minister Aden Duale was found in contempt for defying the injunction. Construction had already begun, prompting protests in the nearby town of Nanyuki, where hundreds of residents clashed with security forces. Critics—including the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union, the Law Society of Kenya and the Katiba Institute—condemned the secrecy of the plan, warned of health risks, and framed the move as a breach of Kenyan sovereignty. Law Society President Charles Kanjama said, “If this is not neocolonialism, then tell me what it is,” while Dr. Davji Bhimji Atellah complained of “lack of transparency and public involvement… raising more questions than answers.”