What We’re Watching: Kenyan election jitters, Ukraine hits Wagner, Israel strikes near Russian bases

What We’re Watching: Kenyan election jitters, Ukraine hits Wagner, Israel strikes near Russian bases
A man scuffles with the security officials before the result of Kenya's presidential election is announced in Nairobi.
REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Kenya's new president is … ?

Deputy President William Ruto won Kenya's presidential election with 50.5% of the vote, the electoral commission declared Monday. Still, the process was very messy: authorities initially delayed the announcement amid clashes at the national counting center and accusations of vote rigging from Ruto's rival Raila Odinga. What’s more, four out of the commission's seven members refused to endorse the result over vague fraud claims. So, what happens now? Odinga, who represents the country’s dynastic politics, might contest the result in court, as he did five years ago, when the Supreme Court found so many logistical errors in the presidential election that it forced a rerun. Also, in 2007 more than 1,200 Kenyans were killed following a similarly disputed vote. (Both Ruto and outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta were then taken before the International Criminal Court for inciting violence, but charges against both were later dropped.) All eyes are now on the 77-year-old Odinga, in his fifth and presumably last run for the presidency. Will he risk more unrest and perhaps violence to win at all costs? Such uncertainty doesn't bode well for East Africa's most vibrant democracy. This election “started off as the most transparent and ends up in farce," tweeted political cartoonist Patrick Gathara.

Ukraine hits Wagner Group HQ

On August 8, a pro-Russian journalist working in the Ukrainian town of Popasna in Russian-held territory posted a series of images from his visit to the local headquarters of a Russian mercenary organization known as the Wagner Group. One of those images included a street sign that read Mironovskaya 12, the building’s address. Though the journalist later deleted that image, it appears the Ukrainian military had already seen it. On Sunday, Ukrainian officials claim its forces destroyed that building with the help of a HIMARS, a US-provided artillery rocket system capable of hitting a target precisely up to 43.5 miles away. Pro-Russian journalists have confirmed the hit, though reports of casualties remain sketchy. It’s another high-profile setback for the Wagner Group, believed to be closely linked to the Kremlin through one of Vladimir Putin’s most trusted advisers and to the GRU, the Russian military intelligence agency. Wagner has been active in Ukraine, Syria, Libya, and West and Central Africa, sometimes at the invitation of local governments. It has also been accused of war crimes and human rights violations.

Israel strikes too close for Russian comfort in Syria

Syria’s state broadcaster said Monday that three Syrian soldiers were killed in a series of Israeli air strikes on Damascus and south of Tartous province. For years, Israel has been striking targets in Syria in order to hamper Iranian efforts to deliver weapons to Hezbollah in neighboring Lebanon. But this time was different: Israel hit targets that are very close to Russia’s sole naval base in the Mediterranean, where Russian warships are docked, and to a Russian air base in Latakia province. Moscow, which backs Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad rand largely controls Syrian airspace, has long allowed Israeli warplanes to target Iranian strategic assets there, so long as they don’t interfere with the Kremlin’s strategic interests in the region. Russia has also been willing to cooperate with Israel on these aerial missions in part because it is competing with Iran for dominance inside Syria. But Israeli-Russian ties have been strained in recent months as Israel has sought to offer some support to Ukraine. Indeed, Russia might punish Israel with more limited access to launch strikes against Syria — a move Israel would see as a big threat to its national security interests.

More from GZERO Media

President Donald Trump talks to the media next to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, with a Tesla car in the background, at the White House on March 11, 2025.

REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Elon Musk may have a big day ahead. On Friday, according to the New York Times, he’ll be made privy to war plans for a US military conflict with China. But President Donald Trump has denied that Musk will be briefed on China during his visit.

Secretary of Education Linda McMahon smiles during the signing event for an executive order to shut down the Department of Education next to U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington, DC, March 20, 2025.
REUTERS/Carlos Barria

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday stripping away much of the Department of Education, but he stopped short of dismantling it completely.

Canadian PM Mark Carney
Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Reuters

The countdown is on! At noon on Sunday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to dissolve parliament and send voters into an election campaign that promises to be one of the most consequential — and hotly contested — in recent history.

Human rights activists hold a placard reading 'Military is a Killer of Women' during Aksi Kamisan, or Thursday's Protest, in front of the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, on March 20, 2025.
Afriadi Hikmal/NurPhoto via Reuters

Indonesian activists are protesting a new law allowing active-duty military members to serve an expanded role in the civilian government — a move they warn could bring back the days of military repression under strongman leader Suharto.

Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas arrives at the Consilium building in Brussels, Belgium, on March 20, 2025.
Aleksy Witwicki/Sipa USA

Though European leaders have been excluded from Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine, meetings on Thursday in Brussels and London aimed to demonstrate Europe’s continuing commitment to supply Ukraine with the weapons it needs to repel Russian invaders.

The BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt unites leaders and experts from business, politics, science, and civil society to tackle some of today's most pressing challenges. With our partners and a global network of over 2,600 members, we collaborate to advance solutions in our focus areas – energy transition and climate change, urbanization and infrastructure, and education and qualification. Learn more about how we create a positive dynamic that strengthens an innovative and responsible economy while also promoting an open-minded and future-proof society here.

Jess Frampton

Donald Trump has not yet made the traditional congratulatory call to Mark Carney, but the US president is not calling Carney “governor” – like he did with Justin Trudeau. Which would be ironic, considering the Canadian PM once served as governor of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. Could it be that Trump had a special desire to bully Trudeau and will take a different approach with his successor? Stephen Maher reports ...

Outgoing GZERO Publisher Evan Solomon
GZERO

GZERO’s Evan Solomon announced on Thursday that he will be returning to Canada and running for Mark Carney’s Liberals. A former Canadian broadcaster, he has been GZERO’s publisher since 2022.