What began as a tense election week in Tanzania descended into one of the countryβs deadliest episodes of political violence in decades, as witnesses across major cities described police opening fire on civilians, many of them far from any protests, leaving hundreds dead and families still searching for the missing.
Around 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 31, police patrols entered Mjimwema, a quiet hillside neighborhood in Mwanza overlooking Lake Victoria. Residents were drinking coffee, shopping or watching television. There were no demonstrations nearby.
Without warning, officers began firing in multiple directions, witnesses told Reuters, sending people scrambling for cover. Men sheltering inside a small wooden cafe were ordered outside, forced to lie face down on the street, and then shot.
When the gunfire stopped, more than a dozen people lay dead.
A video later verified by Reuters showed the aftermath: 13 motionless bodies sprawled across blood-soaked ground near the cafe entrance, sandals and c
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