Advocate Ndegwa Njiru has questioned whether it is still safe for Kenyans to travel to the historic lands often called “Canaan”, given the intensifying bombing and missile strikes in the Middle East involving Israel, Iran, and Lebanon.

Taking it to his X handle on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, Ndegwa has seemingly pointed out the famous political analogy of the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga of leading Kenya to Canaan, or rather, national prosperity, peace and social and economic transformation, which he states is viciously contrasted with the real danger in the Canaan area.

“At this rate of bombing and missile strikes, of Israel by Hamas, Iran and Lebanon, is it safe anymore for Kenyans to go to Canaan? “Njiru stated.

Although the meaning of the Raila Canaan was hope and a safe journey to a brighter future in Kenya, the state of affairs in the Middle East today is a strong reminder that not all voyages, both geographical and political, are associated with certain predictable risks.

State of war in Middle East

With the conflict rapidly expanding and safety conditions deteriorating, the seasoned lawyer argues that what was once a destination for pilgrimage, tourism, and business has become a potentially lethal environment for foreign travellers.

As the war grows uphill and the security situation becomes worse, the experienced lawyer makes the argument that a place where people used to come to pilgrimage, tourism and conduct business has turned into a potentially life-threatening place to foreign travellers. The Middle East has fallen into a multi-front conflict that has gone off in a dramatic fashion at the end of February 2026.

The aggressive military operation by the United States and Israel against some of the most significant Iranian military facilities caused a rapid and huge Iranian retaliation, which consisted of ballistic missile and drone attacks on Israeli cities, US bases in the Gulf, and civilian locations in the Emirates.

The forces of Iran have already killed and injured civilians in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, destroyed infrastructure, and increased the fear of foreign nationals in the area.

On March 2, 2026, Hezbollah, a Lebanese ally of Iran, fired missiles and drones into northern Israel, and Israel responded by aggressively bombing Hezbollah locations and cities in Beirut and southern Lebanon.

At this point, Advocate Njiru claims that clear and present threats include the unpredictability of missile attacks, airport closures, flight delays, and combat areas, which cannot be superseded by the traditional appeal of Canaan. The risk to Kenyan travellers is still high until the conflict ends and the authorities assure that the conditions are stable.