Four people have been killed and at least 30 injured in protests linked to Kenya's nationwide transport strikes against recent increases in the cost of fuel, according to the interior minister.

🌐 Here's What Happened

Thousands of commuters were left stranded, with key roads in the capital Nairobi largely empty as some businesses remained shut and schools asked students to stay at home.

Protesters have been blocking roads and erecting burning barricades. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen added that 348 people had been arrested.

The strike comes days after the authorities raised petroleum prices to record levels, with costs increasing by more than 20%.

📌 Key Details

Kenya, like many other African countries, relies heavily on fuel imports from the Gulf, a supply route disrupted by the US-Israel conflict with Iran that began on 28 February. Even though a ceasefire has been declared, fuel prices have remained high as the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world's oil passes through, is still blocked.

Many passengers were stranded at bus stops in the capital in the morning. Others arriving from elsewhere to Nairobi could not get into the city.

"There is no matatu anywhere... We used to pay 100 to 150 shillings, right now it's 300. Life is becoming so unbearable. So please, [President William] Ruto, wherever you are, if you can listen to us Kenyans, please lower those fuel prices," a resident of Kitengela on the outskirts of the city, who identified himself as Charles, told the Reuters news agency.

The conductor of a bus carrying passengers from Tanzania said they could not get to Nairobi in the morning because of roadblocks and were stranded in Kajiado, a town about 75km (46 miles) from the city.

"The bus was full. Many passengers were travelling for work and business. People are now stranded and frustrated because transport has been disrupted," he told the BBC.

Abdi Suleiman, a motorist who operates in the south-eastern Kenyan border town of Taveta and sources food items from across the border in Tanzania, told the BBC that he was unable to supply them as usual since morning because of the strike.

📰 Source: BBC Africa