Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions of violence and gunshot injuries.
A crowd runs in panic along a dusty street as gunfire echoes. In the chaos, a woman in a purple jacket falls, leaving her friend pleading for help as blood spreads from her wounds. This scene, filmed in Arusha, Tanzania, illustrates the violent crackdown by police on protests ignited during recent elections.
Protests, which began in Dar es Salaam on October 29, spread nationwide, fueled by long-standing frustrations over an entrenched political system dominated by a single party since Tanzania's independence in the 1960s. Opposition figures were arrested, with current President Samia Suluhu Hassan declared the winner of the elections with an improbable 98% of the vote.
The UN human rights office reported alarming indications of hundreds dead, possibly more than 500. Evidence suggests that the government's response included a near-total internet blackout and severe threats against those sharing footage of the violence. Once the ban was lifted, graphic videos surfaced, showing police firing into crowds, with many bodies on the streets.
Verified footage analyzed by BBC Verify shows young male protesters confronted by heavily armed units using tear gas and live rounds against civilians. Reports of deaths and casualties extended even to Tanzania's second-largest city, Mwanza, where similar violence occurred.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has urged an investigation into these killings and for all detainees to be released unconditionally.
