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As per the main rival party, approximately 700 people have supposedly been slain during 72 hours of poll-related clashes in the East African nation.

Unrest Begins on Election Day

Unrest commenced on Wednesday over what demonstrators described as the suppression of the opposition after the disqualification of prominent candidates from the election contest.

Fatality Estimates Stated

An rival representative declared that hundreds of people had been killed since the unrest commenced.

"Currently, the fatality count in the port city is nearly 350 and for Mwanza it is over 200. Combined with numbers from elsewhere around the country, the total number is around 700," the spokesperson remarked.

He mentioned that the number could be even larger because killings might be occurring during a nighttime curfew that was imposed from Wednesday.

Additional Reports

• A security insider allegedly mentioned there had been accounts of over 500 deaths, "perhaps 700-800 in the entire nation."
• The human rights organization reported it had gathered information that a minimum of 100 people had been lost their lives.
• The opposition asserted their figures had been compiled by a network of party members going to medical facilities and health clinics and "counting dead bodies."

Calls for Change

Rival officials demanded the authorities to "cease targeting our demonstrators" and requested a transitional government to enable democratic elections.

"Stop excessive force. Honor the choice of the people which is democratic rights," the spokesperson declared.

Government Measures

Authorities reacted by implementing a curfew. Online restrictions were also observed, with international observers indicating it was across the nation.

On Thursday, the military leader denounced the unrest and called the activists "offenders". He said authorities would try to manage the situation.

Global Reaction

United Nations human rights office said it was "alarmed" by the deaths and injuries in the protests, noting it had received reports that no fewer than 10 people had been slain by security forces.

The office reported it had received trustworthy reports of casualties in Dar es Salaam, in Shinyanga and an eastern area, with security forces using real bullets and chemical irritants to scatter demonstrators.

Legal Opinion

A civil rights lawyer stated it was "unacceptable" for law enforcement to use force, noting that the nation's leader "ought to refrain from deploying the law enforcement against the public."

"She must pay attention to the citizens. The feeling of the nation is that there was no election … The people are unable to choose one candidate," the lawyer said.