Tanzania lockdown extended after election chaos, deaths feared

Tanzania extended a lockdown on Thursday with soldiers and police on the main roads in the country's biggest city, a day after elections turned into violent chaos with unconfirmed reports of many dead.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan had sought to solidify her position and silence criticism within her party in the virtually uncontested polls, with the main challengers either jailed or barred from standing.

But election day descended into chaos as hundreds took to the streets, tearing down her posters and attacking police and polling stations, leading to an internet shutdown and curfew.

An AFP journalist said much of the economic hub Dar es Salaam was calm on Thursday afternoon, but the main port road was blockaded and there was a visible security presence on the streets, with gunshots still frequently heard.

Tourists were stranded at airports and ports as flights were cancelled amid a communications blackout.

Officers were stopping groups of people to check IDs, and soldiers blocked buses from leaving the main terminal, an employee told AFP.

Schools will remain closed on Friday and civil servants will work from home, government spokesperson Gerson Msigwa said on Instagram.

It was unclear if a curfew declared on Wednesday would be extended.

A diplomatic source told AFP they had unconfirmed reports of 30 or more people killed.

An internet blackout was partially lifted Thursday afternoon, along with limits on international calls.

The heavily controlled local media had made few updates to stories since early Wednesday, but the national broadcaster announced early results of some constituencies with overwhelming victories for Hassan.

- 'Unprecedented' -

In the run-up, rights groups condemned a "wave of terror" in the east African nation, which has seen a string of high-profile abductions that ramped up in the final days.

"It's unprecedented... Where we go from here is unclear," the diplomat said, with Hassan's status "uncertain".

On the semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, the situation was calm although ferries to the mainland were suspended, an AFP reporter said.

Tourists stranded at the airport, some sleeping on the floor among their luggage, said they had had no communication and were running low on cash as card transactions were not working.

"This is the scariest thing I've ever experienced," a South African woman told AFP, describing how outside the airport there were "military guys, dressed in black, masked and carrying big guns".

"I just want to get home," she said.

Scores of tourists, including children and the elderly, were also stranded overnight at the airport near Mount Kilimanjaro, a popular tourist destination.

"There are roadblocks, gunfire, and riots in the streets," a French man told AFP. "We can't go to hotels because they've been evacuated... We risk running out of water and food at some point."

- 'Atrocities' -

Much of the anger online has been directed at Hassan's son, Abdul Halim Hafidh Ameir, who has been in charge of an "informal task force" of police and intelligence services to manage election security, according to specialist publication Africa Intelligence.

It is blamed for a massive increase in abductions of government critics, including a popular social media influencer, Niffer, who was accused of promoting protests with jokey videos about selling facemasks.

"People have argued that (Hassan's son) is behind most of the atrocities that we are witnessing in the country and doing it on behalf of the mother," Amnesty researcher Roland Ebole told AFP.

Hassan has faced opposition from parts of the army and allies of her iron-fisted predecessor, John Magufuli, since she took over upon his death in 2021, analysts say.

Initial hopes for reform faded as she oversaw mounting repression.

Her main challenger, Tundu Lissu, is on trial for treason, facing a potential death penalty and his party, Chadema, banned from running.

The only other serious candidate, Luhaga Mpina of ACT-Wazalendo, was disqualified on technicalities