A BATCH of once-classified documents, recently declassified by US President Donald Trump, has revealed that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) ran a covert base in Nairobi, Kenya, during the 1960s. The files, linked to the John F. Kennedy assassination archives, shed light on the CIA’s expansive operations across Africa at the height of the Cold War.
According to the records, Nairobi was one of six African cities where the CIA maintained an active presence. Other operational bases were located in Johannesburg and Pretoria (South Africa), Lagos (Nigeria), Rabat (Morocco), and Salisbury—now Harare (Zimbabwe).
While the specific nature of the Nairobi base’s activities remains vague, the documents point to a broader CIA strategy aimed at shaping political dynamics and countering Soviet influence on the continent during a period of decolonisation and geopolitical realignment.
CIA’s secretive footprint in Kenya
As is typical of intelligence agencies, the files offer scant details on what exactly the CIA was doing on Kenyan soil. Yet, the presence of a base in Nairobi during President Kennedy’s administration implies a strategic motive. The Kenyan capital’s location and political stability made it an ideal base for gathering intelligence and facilitating diplomatic engagement.
Though the documents don’t confirm how long the Nairobi base remained operational, the CIA’s interest in Kenya did not fade. In the aftermath of the 1998 US embassy bombings in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, the agency significantly stepped up its presence in East Africa. This led to deeper collaboration with Kenyan security agencies, including the establishment of covert counter-terrorism programmes.
Kenya’s growing intelligence partnership
In 2004, the CIA helped form a paramilitary unit embedded within the Kenyan police, known as the Rapid Response Team (RRT). Created as part of a classified initiative to counter terror threats, the RRT operates from a fortified base in Ruiru, just outside Nairobi. It is equipped, funded, and trained with US support, according to Kenyan news outlet Kenyans.co.ke.
The unit’s inception began with ‘Team 18’—a group of Kenyan officers trained in the US and later deployed for local counter-terror operations. Today, the RRT works closely with Kenya’s National Intelligence Service (NIS), and has reportedly been involved in renditions, targeted disruptions, and intelligence-gathering missions.
High-level meetings signal Nairobi’s role
Kenya’s strategic value was underscored in 2024, when former CIA Director William J. Burns visited Nairobi twice to meet with President William Ruto. The meetings focused on counter-terrorism and regional security. One of those visits overlapped with a meeting between Ruto and the head of the UK’s MI6, further signalling Kenya’s central role in international intelligence cooperation.
Although the physical layout and full extent of CIA infrastructure in Kenya remain under wraps, the picture painted by these disclosures is clear: Nairobi has long been—and continues to be—a crucial hub for US-led intelligence and counter-terrorism operations in Africa.
New questions, old secrets
The release of these JFK-era documents is likely to raise fresh questions about the CIA’s covert operations in Africa and beyond. For an agency known for its secrecy, the revelations could prove uncomfortable, as they peel back the curtain on decades-old strategies that still echo today.
As researchers, governments, and the public pore over the newly declassified files, attention will undoubtedly turn to how this hidden chapter in Kenyan–US relations fits into the wider story of Cold War politics and the post-9/11 security landscape.
Information in this report is based on documents released under the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection, authorised by President Donald Trump.
