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Riot police walk past a vandalized campaign poster of President Samia Suluhu Hassan, following a post-election protest at the Namanga One-Post border crossing between Kenya and Tanzania, October 30, 2025. Photo: AFP
NAIROBI:
Around 700 people were killed during three days of election protests in Tanzania, the main opposition party said on Friday, with demonstrators still on the streets amid an internet blackout.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan, whose government is accused of waging a campaign of repression, has sought to consolidate her position and silence critics of her party in virtually uncontested polls, with main challengers either jailed or barred from running.
Wednesday’s election descended into chaos as huge crowds took to the streets of Dar es Salaam and other cities, tearing down posters and attacking police and polling stations, leading to an internet shutdown and a curfew.
With foreign journalists largely barred from covering the election and communications blocked in its third day, information on the ground is scarce.
But the main opposition party, Chadema, which was excluded from the elections, said protesters were marching toward downtown Dar es Salaam on Friday, greeted by a heavy police and military presence.
“As we speak, the death figure in Dar (es Salaam) is around 350 and in Mwanza it is over 200. If you add the figures from other places in the country, the overall figure is around 700,” Chadema spokesperson John Kitoka told AFP.
“The death toll could be much higher,” he warned, saying killings could take place during the nighttime curfew.
A security source told AFP they had heard of more than 500 deaths, “perhaps 700 to 800 across the country”, while Amnesty said it had received reports of at least 100. Many hospitals and clinics were too afraid to speak directly to AFP.
