Tanzania Protests: Opposition Claims 700 Dead

Mass protests erupted across Tanzania after President Samia Suluhu Hassan ran in an election that barred or jailed main opponents, with crowds attacking police and polling stations. Authorities imposed internet shutdowns, nationwide curfews, troop deployments, airport closures and restrictions on foreign journalists. Main opposition Chadema says roughly 700 people were killed over three days and provided city-by-city counts, and some security and diplomatic sources also reported deaths in the hundreds. Rights groups and international bodies reported far lower confirmed figures—Amnesty International said it had information of at least 100 killed while UN human rights cited credible reports of at least 10 deaths—and information remains scarce. The government denied using excessive force and called opposition death toll claims “hugely exaggerated,” and the UN has called for an impartial investigation while Britain, Canada and Norway urged restraint. The unrest spilled into Kenya’s border town of Namanga, disrupting trade and travel.