Amnesty sounds alarm over possible deportation of Turkish family from Kenya
By Aloys Michael, December 21, 2025A Turkish employee in Kenya, together with his family face deportation over claims of being linked with the Gülen movement in Turkey.
Confirming the reports, Amnesty International on Sunday, December 21, 2025, said that the employee was booked under OB 02 of December 21, 2025, by the Anti-Terror Police Unit of the DCI. This is the third such detention of Turkish nationals in Kenya.
“We have reliably learnt the Turkiye authorities sought his arrest through a Mutual Legal Assistance request to the office of the Attorney General. He is at serious risk of refoulement to Türkiye, where he could be subjected to arbitrary detention, torture, or ill-treatment,” the rights group wrote on X.
The Gülen movement, which was inspired by cleric Fethullah Gülen, has been targeted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan since 2013 following graft investigations implicating members of his government.
Erdoğan labelled the movement as a terror organisation and intensified a crackdown after a failed coup attempt in 2016, which he claims was orchestrated by Gülen, a claim the movement denies.
Since the 2016 coup attempt, Türkiye has been accused of pursuing critics abroad using a range of tactics, from surveillance and intimidation to unlawful renditions. Victims of these operations have reported arbitrary detentions, torture, and other human rights violations.
So far, the Turkish National Intelligence Organisation (MİT) has conducted forcible returns of over 100 individuals accused of links to the Gülen movement.
UN on refugee rights
According to the United Nations (UN), forcing a refugee to return to a country where they could face persecution violates both international law and Kenya’s 2021 Refugee Act.
For instance, in October 2024, four Turkish nationals living in Kenya as refugees were sent back to Turkey, despite protections under the UN, sparking widespread condemnation, including from UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
“Kenya has an obligation under international law not to return anyone to a country where they face persecution or harm,” the rights organisation appealed.
“We call on the @DCI_Kenya and both authorities to: Respect the principle of non-refoulement and ensure due process and protection for the family. Allow continued access to legal representation and UNHCR, and @KenyaJudiciary. Our officers are currently at the DCI Upper Hill with family lawyers.”
It is reported that the four individuals were seized by masked men in Nairobi just before their deportation.
But Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’oei said the Turkish authorities had assured that the returnees would be treated with dignity in line with national and international legal obligations.
The case echoes a previous incident in August 2021, when Turkish businessman Harun Aydin was detained at Nairobi’s Wilson Airport on claims of financing terrorism, and later deported to Turkey without facing formal charges.