Kenya holds a memorial service for 16 victims of last month's girls school fire

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Hundreds of mourners gathered on Friday in Kenya’s central town of Gilgil for a memorial service to honor the lives of 16 students who died in a fire at a girls school last month that police said was caused by arson. Authorities have arrested nine suspects.

The remains of the girls, who were students at Utumishi Girls Academy, were placed in white coffins adorned with flowers and topped with their portraits. The coffins were lined up in front of their families, schoolmates, community members and local leaders, who called for justice.

The nine accused girls, who were students at the school, remain in police custody, with interrogations revealing that the May 28 blaze was started by lighting a mattress at the dormitory’s exit using a matchstick and paraffin. No motive has been revealed so far.

During the memorial service, hundreds of students from Utumishi Girls Academy sang a somber hymn declaring that all shall be well. One of the presiding officials reminisced about being a victim of Kenya’s deadliest school fire in 2001, when 67 boys died in a dormitory blaze in Machakos County in eastern Kenya.

Mourners called for accountability and justice as dozens of schools have closed in recent days because of student unrest. The Kenya Red Cross said that it had responded to 37 school fires since the beginning of the year.

School fires are common in Kenya, with some linked to arson attacks by students protesting disciplinary measures or scheduled examinations, while others are caused by electrical faults.

Congested dormitories, a lack of emergency exits and insufficient firefighting equipment have often contributed to loss of life and extensive damage.

Last month, Kenya's Education Ministry suspended the principal of Utumishi Girls Academy for failing to comply with school fire safety regulations. The ministry also said that it had closed more than 300 schools following a 2024 fire tragedy that killed 21 boys in central Kenya.

During the Friday memorial service attended by Kenyan first lady Rachel Ruto, the presiding bishop questioned how much longer Kenyan children and families would continue to suffer from school fires.

The school captain, Abigael Wanjiku, eulogized the girls as “friends, study partners, teammates and companions.”

“The pain of losing them is one that we will carry for a long time,” she said.

A mother representing the parents broke down in tears during her speech as she called for accountability and justice, while reassuring the surviving students that ensuring their safety remained a priority.

A member of Kenya's National Youth Service stands among mourners attending a memorial service for the 16 girls who died in the Utumishi Academy school fire at Gilgil Stadium, Nakuru County, Kenya, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A father grieves beside the casket carrying the remains of his daughter, one of the 16 girls who died in the Utumishi Academy school fire, during a memorial service at Gilgil Stadium, Nakuru County, Kenya, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A relative grieves while standing between caskets carrying the remains of girls who died in the Utumishi Academy school fire during a memorial service at Gilgil Stadium, Nakuru County, Kenya, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A relative grieves while standing between caskets carrying the remains of girls who died in the Utumishi Academy school fire during a memorial service at Gilgil Stadium, Nakuru County, Kenya, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A mourner reacts as she stands between caskets carrying the remains of the 16 girls who died in the Utumishi Academy school fire during a memorial service at Gilgil Stadium, Nakuru County, Kenya, Friday, June 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO’s top military officer is weighing alternative plans to defend Europe should it come under attack from Russia, after the United States announced that it is cutting the number of aircraft and warships that it would provide in a security crisis.

The so-called NATO Force Model is Plan A for making forces from the 32 member nations available in times of peace, crisis or war. It sets out the military assets that commanders can call on in phases over the first six months of any conflict.

But last month, the Pentagon warned its NATO allies that it would be scaling down its commitment to focus on potential threats elsewhere, notably from China in the Indo-Pacific region.

European countries and Canada had waited impatiently for over a year for the Trump administration to detail its plans after it warned that Europe is no longer a top U.S. security priority. They knew cuts were coming, but not how big, fast or what kind.

U.S. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, NATO’s supreme allied commander, said that “the United States is still committed to providing limited but critical capabilities to the alliance.”

“We need to focus on things that we can acquire quickly, that we can field quickly, and that we can scale rapidly and sustain over time, and that goes for long-range fires” as well as drones, Grynkewich said at the ILA Berlin Air Show on Thursday.

“Those sorts of things can help us mitigate the near-term risk should we find ourselves needing to deter and defend,” he added.

After allies met on June 2-3 to assess gaps left by the U.S. move, Grynkewich said that European allies and Canada should fill them by supplying manned and unmanned aircraft, and with naval vessels. It should happen “now and in the near term,” he said.

The precise nature of the cuts remains secret, but media reports in Germany and the U.S. suggest that an aircraft carrier with its support group of warships and aircraft as well as a submarine would leave the European theater. Aerial refueling planes and dozens of fighter jets would no longer be available.

All are in short supply in Europe, and it’s unclear where they might be found in a hurry. Still, Washington wants to know how its allies intend to backfill these assets by the time President Donald Trump and his NATO counterparts meet for a summit in Turkey on July 7-8.

On Friday, NATO military headquarters announced that it will cut back its security force in Kosovo by withdrawing some troops and equipment. KFOR began deploying in 1999 to keep the peace between Kosovo and Serbia.

Once composed of 50,000 personnel, KFOR has been routinely scaled back over the years as tensions eased, although 1,000 additional troops were deployed there in 2023, after fresh violence erupted.

“The current conditions provide an opportunity to optimize KFOR’s size and posture further,” Grynkewich said. His team declined to say what forces might leave and whether any Americans would go.

“It’s not about numbers, it’s about optimization, and about ensuring the safety and security of all people living in Kosovo, and more broadly the region,” his spokesman said.

The United States currently has 590 troops deployed with KFOR, second only among its 31 contributing nations to Italy, with 907 personnel. U.S. Black Hawk helicopters are also stationed at the sprawling U.S. base there, Camp Bondsteel.

In any case, Grynkewich said in Berlin that intelligence reports and Russian troop movements suggest “Russia is not looking for a conflict with NATO.” Russia is also currently bogged down in the war on Ukraine and struggling to recruit enough troops.

Governments and intelligence services in Europe have warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin could be in a position to launch an attack elsewhere on the continent within three to five years, especially if he wins in Ukraine.

Associated Press writers Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin and Zana Cimili in Pristina, Kosovo, contributed to this report.

F/A-18 Hornet multi-role fighters of the Finnish Air Force take off from a road strip during NATO's Ramstein Flag 26 exercise in Tervo, Finland, Wednesday June 10, 2026. (Matias Honkamaa/Lehtikuva via AP)

A F/A-18 Hornet multi-role fighter of the Finnish Air Force lands on a road strip during NATO's Ramstein Flag 26 exercise in Tervo, Finland, Wednesday June 10, 2026. (Matias Honkamaa/Lehtikuva via AP)