Why Ruto’s Trip to Israel Should be Concerning for Azimio and the President’s Dissenters

Kenyan President William Ruto’s trip to Israel is concerning. Israel is a country that deploys some very baleful (harmful) ‘security’ technologies especially when it comes to espionage. Even more, Israel has continually persecuted the Palestinians and Kenya, as a peace-loving country, has no business “upgrading” relations with Israel, including seeking collaboration on the security front.

In Israel for an official visit.
I will have engagements with PM @netanyahu Agriculture Ministe Uri Ariel and Knesset (Parliament).

— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) October 12, 2015

Israel has Continually and Fervently Persecuted Palestinians

Kenya is a peace-loving country and a peacekeeper in the East and Central regions of Africa. As such, it’s President William Ruto, who’s under increasingly heated dissent from the opposition party Azimio, has no business making a trip there to, among other things, seek Israel’s help when it comes to security.

Opinion: Ruto Should Have Stayed Away from Israel in Support of the Palestinian People

Ruto’s trip to Israel should be very concerning for Kenyans as the trip seeks cooperation with a nation that has not hesitated, time and again, to bomb a whole entire race and persecute them day in and day out. In my view, Kenyans stand with the Palestinians and their plight and the Kenyan President should have resisted his trip and the call for an upgrade of relations with Israel, as a way to show Kenya’s disapproval of the oppression and persecution of Palestinians by the State of Israel.

Israel Deploys Some Very Baleful Espionage Software including the Pegasus Spyware

Israel supports the intelligence arm of its army and its spy agency, Mossad, to create, deploy, and even sell some very harmful espionage software. A case in point is the Pegasus Spyware by Israel’s NSO Group that’s been sold to autocratic governments in the past and used to spy on and persecute journalists and political dissenters. As such, Azimio officials should be very wary because President Ruto could as well have gone to Israel to purchase something like Pegasus in exchange for giving Israel back-door access to the investment opportunities in Kenya.

Why the Pegasus Spyware is a Risk to Ruto’s Political Dissenters and Azimio Officials and Supporters

Pegasus has been known to be planted on dissenters’ and journalists’ phones as a way to spy on them and tap into their communications to monitor politically dissenting activities. Even more, sometimes the governments and dictatorships that have been sold to the spyware use this information to directly attack and even murder journalists and political dissenters. Take an example of how Pegasus was allegedly used by Saudi Arabia to help lure and murder journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Ruto’s Merky Leadership When It Comes to Dissent and Political Opposition

Since Israel doesn’t seem to be vetting the governments and regimes that it sells the spyware to, meaningfully even, then the spyware could end up in the hands of Presidents such as Ruto and others who may be keen to clamp down on dissent. It is very concerning that President William Ruto took the trip to Israel, especially since he’s known to employ underhand tactics against his opponents. Some have even likened his leadership to the late Kenyan dictator and his mentor, Daniel Arap Moi.

How to Stay Safe From Pegasus and Other Spyware

With an abundance of caution and with the risks of the President’s trip in consideration, Azimio One Kenya officials and their supporters should be very careful to prevent the government’s use of Pegasus to infiltrate their smartphones, and the spyware’s potential use by Ruto’s regime to spy on them.

Azimio Officials, Supporters, and Ruto’s Dissenters Should be Wary of Using Smartphones for their Sensitive Communications

As such, they and other dissenters should be very wary of the WhatsApp messages and links they open and should, in some instances, use non-smart or frugal phones, especially those without internet capabilities, for their most sensitive communications. Pegasus can infiltrate one’s phone by just sending a WhatsApp message to a smartphone or just a simple email or text message, often with a phishing link that when clicked on, compromises the phone.

The Irony of President William Ruto’s Visit to Israel

President William Ruto’s visit to Israel is ironic, least not in how it seeks assistance from Israel on the agricultural front. Kenyan agricultural projects such as the Galana Kulalu irrigation scheme were directly borrowed from and modeled on Israel’s approach and technology in agriculture. However, the monies for Galana Kulalu, similar projects, and the dams that were to be constructed to give a lifeline to the agricultural projects were embezzled, with corrupt Kenyan government officials pocketing the public funds.

Ruto’s Dam Scandals and the Irony of Him Going to Israel as President to Seek Guidance on Agriculture

President Ruto himself was embroiled in a scandal about one of the dams where he himself publicly admitted and cleared the air that it was KES 7 billion that had been lost. He did so back when he was the Deputy President in the previous regime. Note below how Ruto spreads propaganda using the “our people” rhetoric.

Kenya and Israel have a uniquely strong, deep and warm relationship. We are broadening this friendship — with a special focus on agriculture — to efficiently produce more to feed our people and export the surplus. pic.twitter.com/I6kRdnziM8

— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) May 9, 2023

As such, what an ironic thing for him to now go to Israel to seek help and guidance on how to bolster agriculture in the country when he’s been accused of, time and again, curtailing agricultural projects and even corruptly stealing from the public coffers monies for seeds, maize distribution, and the sale of grains, among others.

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