MN HR8

Kenyan police arrested approximately 4,000 Somalis and Kenyans of Somali origin in April 2014 during a security operation, including women, children, and elders, with some pregnant women experiencing miscarriages in detention.

Detainees were held in concentration camp-type conditions at Kasarani sports stadium and police stations, with cells designed for 20 people holding hundreds in filthy conditions, and Human Rights Watch documented police whipping, beating, and verbal abuse.

Some detainees were released only after paying bribes, exchanging sex for release, or producing identification documents after days in deplorable conditions.

Kenya deported hundreds of Somali detainees to Somalia without providing asylum applications, violating international law that prohibits forced return to persecution or torture.

Minnesota House of Representatives encourages the U.S. President and Congress to take action to safeguard the security of innocent Somali noncombatants in Kenya and directs transmission of the resolution to federal officials and Minnesota's congressional delegation.