A contentious debate has emerged in Kenya regarding the accountability of Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) officers after a video showed masked operatives along the Coast being confronted by travelers. Passengers demanded identification from the officers, citing a High Court ruling mandating police to display their faces and uniforms.

• A High Court ruling on August 14, 2024, by Justice Bahati Mwamuye, stipulated that police must clearly display uniforms and identification and not obscure their faces during public engagements.
• Human rights lobbyist Hussein Khalid, CEO of VOCAL Africa, criticized the officers for not adhering to the court order.
• Many Kenyans online defended the ATPU officers, citing the high-risk operational environment in terror-prone regions and the need for masked deployments for officer safety.