Eastleigh business community on Friday shut down the popular shopping hub in solidarity with victims of the Dusit terror attack.
Residents and business operators closed down their shops and took to the streets to peacefully protest the death of at least 21 people in the hands of Al Shabaab militia.
Kamukunji MP Yusuf Hassan, who represents the area in Parliament and is himself a survivor of Al Shabaab terror attacks, led the Eastleigh community in the protest.
Hassan urged Kenyans from all walks of like to shun divisive ideology that often provides fodder for extremist groups such as the Al Shabaab.
“Tens of thousands of Eastleigh residents and business owners come out on the streets of the business hub to condemn terrorism. Business, religious and political leaders led by Kamukunji @MPyusufhassan called for Kenyans to shun divisive ideology,” Ahmed Mohamed, popularly referred as the mayor of Eastleigh tweeted.
Eastleigh has in the past borne the brunt of terrorism, with several bomb attacks being reported from 2011 when the Kenyan Defense Forces went to Somalia.
But while other Kenyans have mainly suffered as victims of the numerous terror attacks carried out in the past eight years, the Eastleigh community have also been victims of police brutality as security forces sought to dismantle what they described as terrorist cells in the area.
In 2014, over 500 people were arrested in the estate and kept in stadiums and police stations.
Footage of the operation have been widely used by extremist groups to push their divisive agenda.