NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Six bodies were retrieved from the debris of a building in Kenya’s capital on Thursday, two weeks after the deadly collapse, bringing the confirmed death toll to eight as police said recovery operations were nearing completion.
Sixteen people are still believed to be missing since the building fell on Oct. 23.
Four people were rescued alive from the 18-story building, which collapsed along a busy commercial street in Nairobi, while its upper floors were still under construction. The ground and basement floors had been rented out to businesses, including an electronics shop, a grocery store, a textile shop and a butchery.
Nairobi County Gov. Johnson Sakaja said the building had not been approved for construction and that the renting out of the completed floors was also illegal.
He blamed weak enforcement of construction regulations and minimal penalties for developers’ blatant disregard for building laws in the capital.
The developer has since been questioned by investigators, but no arrests have been made. The building was owned by two partners under a joint venture agreement.
Kenya has recorded 98 building collapses over the past five years, resulting in 104 deaths and 80 injuries, according to government data.
The country is currently co-hosting the International Conference on Strengthening Search and Rescue Services in Africa, alongside the United Nations and the Russian government. Participants are discussing innovations that could save lives during building collapses, with the aim of strengthening emergency response capacity across African countries.
Three days after the Nairobi building collapsed, the government partnered with a Chinese company that introduced thermal imaging technology at the site. The technology detected two people trapped beneath the rubble.
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A Kenya Defence Forces officer speaks with a member of the China-based Blue Sky Rescue Team at the scene of a collapsed multistory building in Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Security forces and civil defense work after a multi-story building collapsed in Nairobi, Kenya, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s envoy appeared with first lady Melania Trump at the White House on Thursday as she brought together Russian and Ukrainian officials to mark the localized ceasefire she brokered between their nations.
Speaking at the invitation of the first lady, Kirill Dmitriev thanked Trump for her “distinguished humanitarian role” in securing the ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. President Donald Trump did not appear.
Dmitriev added that Putin personally gave instructions as part of the operation and sent his thanks to Melania Trump. The event included officials from Russia and Ukraine to honor the ceasefire, which was signed Oct. 23.
The head of the parliamentary faction of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s party, Davyd Arakhamia, and Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, also spoke at the event.
Trump said that she hoped the suspension of hostilities in the ravaged, Russian-occupied Ukrainian village of Oleshky can lead to something more enduring than the six day ceasefire.
“What matters is not the modesty of this beginning but the determination to turn into something extraordinary," she said.
The White House announced Oct. 23 that the first lady had brokered a ceasefire in the ravaged, Russian-occupied Ukrainian village of Oleshky so that humanitarian aid can be delivered and civilians can be evacuated from a place she said was “on the brink of disaster.”
The announcement came after Ukrainian, Russian and U.S. negotiators had reached an agreement to deliver relief to Oleshky in the war-divided region of Kherson in southern Ukraine.
The local ceasefire was in effect from Oct. 27 to Nov. 1 and amounted to the most significant truce since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine 4½ years ago.
An estimated 2,000 people remained in Oleshky when the temporary truce took hold on Oct. 27, lasting for six days before ending on Nov. 1. They were offered the choice of evacuating to territory controlled by Ukraine or Russia, or remaining in the city with replenished food and medical supplies.
During the pause in hostilities, residents of Oleshky crossed into Ukrainian-held territory in a major evacuation operation. Evacuees wrapped in blue and yellow Ukrainian flags stepped off buses at the Ukrainian-Belarusian border and reunited with family members.
Ukrainian authorities have not said how many residents were evacuated from Oleshky and have restricted details of their route to protect those who remained and safeguard future humanitarian missions. Melania Trump said on social media that the humanitarian convoy could safely evacuate more than 750 people.
First lady Melania Trump attends a meeting with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Davyd Arakhamia, head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Servant of the People party, speaks alongside first lady Melania Trump during a meeting with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, left, presents first lady Melania Trump with a state award during a meeting with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
First lady Melania Trump speaks during a meeting with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, left, presents first lady Melania Trump with a state award during a meeting with Russian and Ukrainian representatives in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
