Eight Kenyans workers detained in Libya
Eight Kenyans have been detained in Benghazi, Libya, for over six weeks, with families urging the government to intervene
Eight Kenyans have been detained in Benghazi, Libya, for over six weeks, with families urging the government to intervene urgently and secure their release.
Monica Wanjiru, a Kenyan working in Libya, said the workers were arrested on March 21 after attempting to demand salaries that had been withheld for two to three months.
Language barriers reportedly played a role in escalating the dispute, as employers and security personnel communicated primarily in Arabic, which the Kenyan workers could not understand.
“The Kenyans had a misunderstanding at work due to a language barrier. Security could not understand English, while the Kenyans could not understand Arabic. They were asking for their money for work done over two to three months without pay,” Wanjiru recounted.
She said police were reportedly called to the scene, where they beat and subsequently arrested the workers, who are now being held at a detention centre in Benghazi.
The detainees include John Okutoi from Kakamega, Victor Gathua and Paul Njehia from Nakuru, Kenneth Wanjehia and Kevin Riguini from Nyeri, Juma Njira and James Opiyo from Mombasa and Collins Koech from Kapsabet.
One of the detainees reported that they had been taken to court, where cases had been opened accusing them of assaulting the security officers.
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According to their families, the workers arrived in Libya in December 2025, travelling from Kenya through Egypt to Libya. They were reportedly connected to jobs by employment agencies based in Kenya, Uganda and Dubai.
Families of the detained workers have condemned the lack of assistance from employment agencies, some of which allegedly solicited large sums of money in exchange for help.
They are now appealing to the Kenyan government for urgent intervention, stressing that the men are victims of fraud rather than criminals.
Wanjiru said that efforts to contact the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs have so far not produced results, leaving families uncertain.
“We have tried to reach out to the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs but received no assistance, and there is no Kenyan embassy in Libya. We are pleading with the government to help secure the release of the detained Kenyans so they can return home and their families can have peace,” she pleaded.
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