Foreign
Tanzania President Wins 98% In Election As Opposition Says Hundreds Killed
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Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan condemned protests around the election in which she was declared winner on Saturday with almost 98 per cent of the vote, while the opposition said hundreds have been killed by security forces.
The electoral commission said Hassan won 97.66 per cent of the vote, with turnout at 87 per cent, despite reports from AFP journalists and other observers that polling stations were largely empty.
Hassan, 65, had sought to cement her position and silence critics in her party with an emphatic victory, helped by the main opposition candidates being either jailed or disqualified.
But a heavy crackdown and the lack of options sparked mass protests around the country.
“The government strongly condemns and denounces those incidents,” said Hassan as she accepted a winner’s certificate on state television.
“When it comes to the national security… there is no alternative but to employ all defence measures.”
The main opposition party, Chadema, told AFP “no less than 800 people” have been killed by security forces since Wednesday.
A security source and a diplomat in Dar es Salaam both told AFP that deaths were “in the hundreds”, but verifying information remained difficult as an internet blackout was still in place Saturday.
The election result is a “mockery of the democratic process,” Chadema spokesman John Kitoka told AFP, calling for a “fresh election”.
“We are going to announce our reaction that could also include calling for national protests,” he added.
Father Charles Kitima, secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference in Dar es Salaam, said Tanzania has become a “totalitarian regime”.
“It’s a very sad event. For the first time in our country, we are experiencing the mass killing of people protesting,” he told AFP by phone.
The African Union chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf congratulated Hassan in a statement but said he “deeply regrets the loss of human life”.
Tourists have been stranded by cancelled flights, and the main port at Dar es Salaam — a major economic lifeline for the country — was shuttered, according to data from tracker Vessel Finder and Dutch shipping firm C. Steinweg.
There were reports Saturday of spiking food prices as shops ran low on supplies, petrol stations were closed and public transport halted.
“I have been staying in the mosque since Wednesday when the violence erupted,” Mohamed Rajab, a 52-year-old in Dar es Salaam, told AFP.
“There is no transport. I’m not sure when I’m going back home.”
‘Wave Of Terror’
Hassan was elevated from vice-president on the sudden death of her predecessor, John Magufuli, in 2021.
Rights groups say she oversaw a “wave of terror” in the East African nation ahead of the vote, including a string of high-profile abductions that escalated in the final days.
Chadema was barred from taking part in the election, and its leader put on trial for treason.
Despite a heavy security presence, election day descended into chaos as crowds took to the streets across the country, tearing down her posters and attacking police and polling stations, leading to an internet shutdown and curfew.
Hassan’s government denies using “excessive force”.
But UN chief Antonio Guterres was “deeply concerned” about the situation in Tanzania, “including reports of deaths and injuries during the demonstrations,” according to his spokesman.
Much public anger has been directed at Hassan’s son, Abdul Halim Hafidh Ameir, accused of overseeing the pre-election crackdown.
There have been unconfirmed reports of the army siding with protesters in some places, but army chief Jacob Mkunda came out strongly on Hassan’s side on Thursday, calling the protesters “criminals”.
Foreign Minister Mahmoud Thabit Kombo said Friday that his government had “no figures” on any dead.
“Currently, no excessive force has been used,” he said in an interview with Al Jazeera. “There’s no number until now of any protesters killed.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the restoration of international internet access in Iran, which had been suspended since the United States and Israel launched attacks against the country, local media reported Monday.
“The decree aimed at restoring internet access to its pre-January state was communicated to the Ministry of Communications by the president,” Iranian news agencies Tasnim and Fars reported.
Authorities shut down the internet during large-scale anti-government protests that peaked in early January, then suspended it again on February 28 at the start of the Middle East war.
Since then, the population has only had access to domestic platforms and websites.
AFP
US President Donald Trump says an agreement with Iran has been “largely negotiated” and details will be announced soon.
The deal would include the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, he said on Saturday, without giving further details.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei earlier told state television that US and Iranian positions had been converging in the last week, but warned that did not mean agreements would be reached on key issues and accused the Americans of “contradictory statements”.
On social media, Trump said he had a “very good call” with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and others about a “Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE”.
“An agreement has been largely negotiated, subject to finalization between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the various other Countries, as listed,” Trump said.
“Final aspects and details of the deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly.”
He also said he had a call on Saturday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which “went very well”.
The president has not given any further details on the deal, but has insisted any agreement would “absolutely” prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Later, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said: “I congratulate President Donald Trump on his extraordinary efforts to pursue peace,” and said the phone call had been “very useful and productive”.
Pakistan has been helping to negotiate a peace deal, serving as an intermediary.
“We hope to host the next round of talks very soon,” he wrote in the statement on X.
The US and Israel launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on 28 February, sparking conflict across the Middle East. Iran responded by launching attacks on Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.
A ceasefire in Iran was agreed in early April, and since then Washington and Tehran have engaged in talks over a long-term peace deal.
Speaking to state television on Saturday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei also described a “memorandum of understanding”, saying Iran’s intention was to reach an agreement “in the form of a framework, consisting of 14 points”.
Baqaei said they were in the process of finalising the memorandum, so further talks could be held within 30 to 60 days “and ultimately a final agreement can be reached”.
The new sense of momentum comes after the mood appeared to have soured in Washington, with anonymous officials briefing US media on Friday that the administration was preparing for a fresh round of military strikes, although no final decision had been made.
On Friday, the president posted on Truth Social that he would not attend his son Donald Jr’s wedding this weekend so he could remain in Washington DC “during this important period of time”.
Last week, Trump had said the truce was on “massive life support” after rejecting Tehran’s demands, labelling them “totally unacceptable”.
The US has blockaded Iranian ports since 13 April.
On Saturday, US Central Command (Centcom) said it had redirected 100 vessels, disabled four, and allowed 26 humanitarian aid ships to pass since the blockade began.
Centcom commander Admiral Brad Cooper said its forces had been “highly effective” in “allowing zero trade into and out of Iranian ports which has squeezed Iran economically”.
Meanwhile, Iran has claimed military control of an area around the Strait of Hormuz, and has said all transit through the strait “requires coordination with and authorisation from the Persian Gulf Strait Authority”.
The US and Gulf allies have repeatedly rejected Iranian attempts to assert control over the strait, and the US has told ships not to comply with Iran’s rules.
Torrential rainfall has brought parts of New York City to a standstill after flash floods submerged roads, disrupted transport systems, and triggered chaotic scenes across multiple boroughs, including Queens and Brooklyn.
A viral video circulating on social media captured the intensity of the flooding, showing a woman struggling in powerful currents after attempting to escape a stranded bus.
The footage, widely shared online, highlighted the dangerous conditions as emergency responders rushed to affected areas.
Heavy downpours overwhelmed drainage systems on Wednesday, with authorities reporting that some areas received about 5 centimetres of rain within just one hour, turning streets and underpasses into fast-moving streams, leaving vehicles stranded and commuters trapped.
Reports say that in Brooklyn and Queens, the impact was particularly severe as floodwaters rose rapidly, forcing some motorists to abandon their vehicles while others waited for rescue on rooftops and elevated ground.
Transit authorities confirmed major disruptions across the city’s transport network.
Officials from New York Emergency Management issued urgent warnings as conditions worsened, advising residents to avoid floodwaters and move to higher ground where necessary.
Amid the ongoing crisis, authorities also referenced a separate fatal incident in Manhattan earlier in the week involving an open manhole.
The victim, identified as 56-year-old Donika Gocaj, died after accidentally stepping into a 10-foot-deep utility opening near Fifth Avenue.
They added, “Our thoughts remain with her family, and safety remains our top priority.”
Authorities say investigations into both the flooding impact and the manhole incident are ongoing as the city continues to recover from severe weather conditions.
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