At least 700 people have been killed during three days of election protests in Tanzania, according to the main opposition party.

Daily Trust had reported how Tanzania’s general election was overshadowed by widespread unrest, internet shutdowns, and a heavy security crackdown, raising serious concerns about the credibility and transparency of the electoral process.

With over 37 million registered voters expected to cast their ballots, the atmosphere across the country was anything but calm.

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The incumbent, President Samia Suluhu Hassan, 65, is seeking her first full term in office after assuming power in March 2021 following the death of her predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli.

Running under the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, Suluhu faces 16 other candidates.

However, the absence of key opposition figures, either barred, disqualified, or facing legal battles, has cast a long shadow over the legitimacy of the contest

There were protests on election day over what demonstrators said was the stifling of the opposition after the exclusion of key candidates from the presidential ballot.

John Kitoka, a spokesperson for the Chadema opposition party, told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that hundreds of people had been killed since then.

“As we speak, the figure for deaths in Dar [es Salaam] is around 350 and for Mwanza it is 200-plus. Added to figures from other places around the country, the overall figure is around 700,” he said.

He added that the toll could be much higher because killings could be happening during a night-time curfew that was imposed from Wednesday.

A security source told AFP there had been reports of more than 500 dead, “maybe 700-800 in the whole country”.

Amnesty International said it had received information that at least 100 people had been killed.

Kitoka said Chadema’s numbers had been gathered by a network of party members going to hospitals and health clinics and “counting dead bodies”.

He demanded that the government “stop killing our protesters” and called for a transitional government to pave the way for free and fair elections. “Stop police brutality. Respect the will of the people which is electoral justice,” Kitoka said.