Kenyan protesters breached parliament barricades on Tuesday and entered the complex where lawmakers were debating contentious tax hike proposals that have sparked widespread anger.
Reports in local media say fires were seen burning in the parliament's premises while some of the protesters reportedly vandalised furniture in the building.
It was not immediately clear whether the demonstrators were able to enter the main parliament's chamber.
Police allegedly fired live bullets at protesters and bodies of some victims were seen outside parliament, some of the reports add.
"Police have shot four protesters, as witnessed by KHRC, killing one. We strongly condemn the police killing," the Kenya Human Rights Commission said on X.
Hundreds of protesters broke through barriers erected by the police outside parliament in the capital, Nairobi, with opening fire leaving "many wounded", according to Amnesty International Kenya.
Oppose Finance Bill
The streets of Nairobi were from morning filled with thousands of protesters as Kenyans marched towards parliament to express their opposition to the Finance Bill 2024 which proposed tax hikes.
Major roads in the capital were blocked by the police who used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the crowd. The protesters chanted slogans calling for the total rejection of the bill.
There has also been a wave of abductions across Kenya of people thought to be key figures in the protest movement, with the country's chief justice Martha Koome describing such alleged abductions as ''amounting to a direct assault on the rule of law".
Faith Odhiambo, chairperson of the Law Society in Kenya, said it was a worrying trend that should end, calling on the international community to break the silence.
Protests have also been staged in the cities of Kilifi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, and Eldoret.
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