U.S. warns Americans in Tanzania as post-election unrest spreads

The U.S. embassy in Tanzania has urged its citizens to remain indoors after violence and roadblocks erupted across the country, a day after protests disrupted the general election.

Demonstrations have intensified in major cities as opposition supporters reject Wednesday’s presidential and parliamentary polls, calling them rigged.

Tensions escalated on Thursday after the electoral commission announced early results showing President Samia Suluhu Hassan with nearly 95% of the vote in the southwestern Mbeya region.

Hassan, who became president in 2021 following the death of her predecessor, John Magufuli, has faced growing criticism over alleged human rights abuses and shrinking political freedoms.

Amnesty International reported that at least two people have been killed this week in the unrest.

Authorities imposed an overnight curfew in Dar es Salaam, a city of more than seven million people, after government buildings were set on fire. Internet access, which was restricted during the election, appeared to be gradually returning on Thursday.

The British government said international flights to and from Dar es Salaam had been cancelled, while airports in Arusha and near Mount Kilimanjaro were temporarily closed.

Rights groups and opposition figures have long accused the Tanzanian government of abducting critics. Although President Hassan announced an investigation into these reports last year, no official findings have been made public.

Tanzania’s election is the latest this month in Africa to ignite public anger, following similar moves by longtime leaders in the Ivory Coast and Cameroon to extend their grip on power.