The move follows the infection of American doctor Dr. Peter Trafford with Ebola in Ituri Province in Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then, the United States had decided to send Americans suspected of Ebola infection to Europe.
Earlier this week, reports emerged that the US intended to establish a center in Kenya that would receive all Americans suspected of Ebola infection, whether arriving from the DRC or other countries in the region.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the American administration would do everything possible to prevent Ebola patients or suspected cases from entering the United States.
Rubio said, “We would not allow and will never allow Ebola-infected individuals to enter the United States.”
On May 28, 2026, the Kenyan government approved the establishment of the facility at the Laikipia Air Base in the Mount Kenya region.
The United States had planned for the center to begin operations on May 29, 2026, with American medical experts expected to assist people placed under quarantine.
The Katiba Institute, a Kenyan organization that advocates for constitutionalism and the rule of law, filed a petition at the High Court in Nairobi arguing that the decision to establish the facility in Laikipia violated Kenyan law.
Judge Patricia Nyaundi ruled in favor of temporarily suspending the plan, stating that the Kenyan government could not authorize the facility before the court hears the arguments presented by Katiba Institute.
The High Court in Nairobi is scheduled to hear the case on June 2, 2026.
