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Kenya's Opposition Leader Odinga Withdraws from Presidential Election Re-Run

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga addresses striking doctors at the Uhuru Park as they wait for the release of jailed officials of the national doctors' union following their case to demand fulfilment of a 2013 agreement between their union and the government that would raise their pay and improve working conditions, in Nairobi, Kenya February 15, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga addresses striking doctors at the Uhuru Park as they wait for the release of jailed officials of the national doctors' union following their case to demand fulfilment of a 2013 agreement between their union and the government that would raise their pay and improve working conditions, in Nairobi, Kenya February 15, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
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Kenya's Opposition Leader Odinga Withdraws from Presidential Election Re-Run

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga addresses striking doctors at the Uhuru Park as they wait for the release of jailed officials of the national doctors' union following their case to demand fulfilment of a 2013 agreement between their union and the government that would raise their pay and improve working conditions, in Nairobi, Kenya February 15, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya
Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga addresses striking doctors at the Uhuru Park as they wait for the release of jailed officials of the national doctors' union following their case to demand fulfilment of a 2013 agreement between their union and the government that would raise their pay and improve working conditions, in Nairobi, Kenya February 15, 2017. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Kenya's opposition leader Raila Odinga withdrew on Tuesday from a court-ordered re-run of the presidential election, saying the vote would not be free or fair and leaving President Uhuru Kenyatta as the only candidate.

The election re-run is scheduled for Oct. 26.

According to Reuters, Kenyatta said the election would proceed as planned, promising to get more votes than he did in August and saying his party had no time for “empty rhetoric and divisive politics”.

The election board said on Twitter it was meeting and would communicate the way forward.

But the announcements could further prolong nearly three months of political uncertainty that has worried citizens and blunted growth in Kenya, East Africa’s biggest economy and a staunch Western ally in a region roiled by conflict.

An ally of Odinga called for nationwide protests from Wednesday, raising the prospect of more clashes between police and demonstrators.

For now though there was little sign that the demonstrations could boil over into ethnic clashes. Protests and ethnic violence killed 1,200 people after a disputed 2007 election.

In his announcement, Odinga repeated previous criticism of the election board, called the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), for not replacing some officials, who he blamed for irregularities in the Aug. 8 poll.

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Israel Ultra-Orthodox Party Threatens Government over Draft Law

Israeli army vehicles transport a group of soldiers and journalists inside the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP)
Israeli army vehicles transport a group of soldiers and journalists inside the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Ultra-Orthodox Party Threatens Government over Draft Law

Israeli army vehicles transport a group of soldiers and journalists inside the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP)
Israeli army vehicles transport a group of soldiers and journalists inside the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP)

Israel's ultra-Orthodox Shas party on Monday threatened to bring down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government by backing a motion for early elections amid a row over military service.

Netanyahu's coalition, one of the most right-wing in Israel's history, is at risk of collapsing over a bill that could reverse the long-standing exemption from the draft for ultra-Orthodox Jews.

The exemption is facing growing pushback as Israel wages war on the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza.

Netanyahu is under pressure from within his Likud party to draft more ultra-Orthodox men and impose penalties on draft dodgers -- a red line for Shas.

The party is demanding legislation to permanently exempt its followers from military service and gave Netanyahu two days to find a solution.

"We don't want to bring down a right-wing government, but we've reached our limit," Shas spokesperson Asher Medina told public radio.

"If there's no last-minute solution (on conscription), we'll vote to dissolve the Knesset," he said, referring to the Israeli parliament.

Last week, a Shas source told AFP the party was threatening to quit the coalition unless a solution was reached by Monday.

The opposition is seeking to place a bill to dissolve parliament on Wednesday's plenary agenda, hoping to capitalize on the ultra-Orthodox revolt to topple the government.

Netanyahu's coalition, formed in December 2022, includes Likud, far-right factions and ultra-Orthodox parties. A walkout by the latter would end its majority.

A poll published in March by right-wing daily Israel Hayom found 85 percent of Israeli Jews support changing the conscription law for Haredim.

Forty-one percent backed compulsory military service -- currently 32 months for men -- for all eligible members of the community.