Kenya: Fabricated Quote Used to Claim Trump Warned Kenyan President Ruto Over 'Oppressing Kenyans' At G7 Summit

Fabricated quote used to claim Trump warned Kenyan president Ruto over 'oppressing Kenyans' at G7 summit

IN SHORT: Graphics have circulated widely in Kenya, with the claim that US president Donald Trump warned president William Ruto of arrest for oppressing Kenyans. But this quote is fabricated.

Several graphics, attributing a controversial quote to US president Donald Trump, are circulating on social media in Kenya.

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The graphics quote Trump as warning Kenyan president William Ruto of possible arrest for allegedly oppressing Kenyans, during the "G7" summit.

The group of seven, or G7, is an informal forum of seven of the world's industrialised democracies, namely Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the US. The annual G7 summit brings their leaders together to discuss global issues.

The host country often invites leaders from other countries and international organisations. The 2026 summit, which began on 15 June, is being held in France, with Ruto among those in attendance.

"William Ruto must explain to us what is happening in his country Kenya! We cant pretend to be seated here in the G7 while I hear Ruto is oppressing Kenyans. If Ruto cannot explain himself today, we have no choice but to arrest him and take him to ICC directly!" the graphics read, appearing to quote Trump.

The ICC, or the International Criminal Court, is a judicial body established to investigate, prosecute and try individuals accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The graphics have been posted widely, receiving over 800,000 views.

But is the quote credible? We checked.

Fabricated quote

Africa Check found that the claim first originated from a graphic posted by the Facebook page Kenya News Flash. The page is notorious for fabricating quotes targeting prominent figures, both locally and internationally, indicating that the quote attributed to Trump may also be fabricated. The quote has since been redesigned and reposted by other pages.

Similarly, we did not find the remarks reported by any credible media outlets, another indication that they may have been fabricated. Local and international media extensively covered the G7 summit, and such a controversial statement would not have gone unnoticed.

All available evidence suggests that the remarks attributed to Trump in the graphics are fabricated and should be disregarded.

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