Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions of violence and gunshot injuries.
A crowd runs in panic along a dusty street. Shots ring out. A woman wearing a purple jacket carrying a stick falls to the ground.
Another woman can be heard pleading, Mama, mama, stand, as she tries to lift her. Blood is spreading around her stomach as another stain appears on her back.
This verified footage, filmed in Tanzania's city of Arusha, is just one of many graphic scenes to have emerged showing the violent actions of police as they attempted to crush widespread protests last month during the country's presidential and parliamentary elections.
The protests started in the city of Dar es Salaam on 29 October and spread across the country over the following days. The demonstrations had largely been organized by young people left angry at what they see as a political system dominated by one party since Tanzania gained independence in the 1960s.
Several opposition leaders were arrested, and others banned from standing during the elections while numerous opposition activists were detained. Incumbent President Samia Suluhu Hassan ultimately secured victory after the electoral commission declared she received 98% of the vote.
Since then, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said it had reports indicating that hundreds of people were killed during the protests, with many more injured or detained. A diplomatic source in Tanzania told the BBC there was credible evidence that at least 500 people had died.
Footage of the protests was suppressed for almost a week when the government imposed a near-total internet blackout and threatened to jail anyone caught sharing any videos from the protests, saying it could cause unrest.
Only once the block was lifted on 4 November did dozens of videos begin to emerge online showing violent scenes: uniformed officers appearing to fire at crowds, bodies lying on the streets, with others piled up outside a hospital.
To understand what happened, BBC Verify has analyzed, geolocated, and confirmed footage, building a clearer picture of how police responded to the demonstrations.
In footage our team has verified, the protests appear to have been dominated by groups of young men, drawing strong parallels with a global Gen-Z youth movement frustrated at economic decline and entrenched leadership in countries across Africa.
The first demonstrations we identified took place early on election day in Dar es Salaam, the country's largest city and economic hub. They spread to other urban areas, including the cities of Mwanza and Arusha.
The internet blackout makes it difficult to establish a clear sequence of events, but what is clear from videos is that protesters were confronted by heavily armed police units blocking their progress and firing tear gas to disperse crowds. In many of the videos, gunfire can clearly be heard as people scatter in the ensuing chaos.
In videos posted online, police vehicles are seen chasing dozens of people as they attempt to flee along Nelson Mandela Road in Dar es Salaam. Several rounds of gunfire can be heard as police advance.
A UN Commissioner has called for investigations into the killing of protesters and for the unconditional release of those arrested. The ongoing scenes and videos paint a vivid narrative of brutality as police enforced order following the electoral results.
A crowd runs in panic along a dusty street. Shots ring out. A woman wearing a purple jacket carrying a stick falls to the ground.
Another woman can be heard pleading, Mama, mama, stand, as she tries to lift her. Blood is spreading around her stomach as another stain appears on her back.
This verified footage, filmed in Tanzania's city of Arusha, is just one of many graphic scenes to have emerged showing the violent actions of police as they attempted to crush widespread protests last month during the country's presidential and parliamentary elections.
The protests started in the city of Dar es Salaam on 29 October and spread across the country over the following days. The demonstrations had largely been organized by young people left angry at what they see as a political system dominated by one party since Tanzania gained independence in the 1960s.
Several opposition leaders were arrested, and others banned from standing during the elections while numerous opposition activists were detained. Incumbent President Samia Suluhu Hassan ultimately secured victory after the electoral commission declared she received 98% of the vote.
Since then, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said it had reports indicating that hundreds of people were killed during the protests, with many more injured or detained. A diplomatic source in Tanzania told the BBC there was credible evidence that at least 500 people had died.
Footage of the protests was suppressed for almost a week when the government imposed a near-total internet blackout and threatened to jail anyone caught sharing any videos from the protests, saying it could cause unrest.
Only once the block was lifted on 4 November did dozens of videos begin to emerge online showing violent scenes: uniformed officers appearing to fire at crowds, bodies lying on the streets, with others piled up outside a hospital.
To understand what happened, BBC Verify has analyzed, geolocated, and confirmed footage, building a clearer picture of how police responded to the demonstrations.
In footage our team has verified, the protests appear to have been dominated by groups of young men, drawing strong parallels with a global Gen-Z youth movement frustrated at economic decline and entrenched leadership in countries across Africa.
The first demonstrations we identified took place early on election day in Dar es Salaam, the country's largest city and economic hub. They spread to other urban areas, including the cities of Mwanza and Arusha.
The internet blackout makes it difficult to establish a clear sequence of events, but what is clear from videos is that protesters were confronted by heavily armed police units blocking their progress and firing tear gas to disperse crowds. In many of the videos, gunfire can clearly be heard as people scatter in the ensuing chaos.
In videos posted online, police vehicles are seen chasing dozens of people as they attempt to flee along Nelson Mandela Road in Dar es Salaam. Several rounds of gunfire can be heard as police advance.
A UN Commissioner has called for investigations into the killing of protesters and for the unconditional release of those arrested. The ongoing scenes and videos paint a vivid narrative of brutality as police enforced order following the electoral results.
