Tanzania risks US sanctions over post-election killings, repression

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1. SS: The US State Department launched a sweeping review of bilateral ties with Tanzania on Dec 4, 2025—signaling potential sanctions—over post-Oct 29 election repression, including security force killings of over 2,000 civilians (per opposition claims), disappearances, torture, and displacement of Maasai communities, which Dar es Salaam dismissed as “hugely exaggerated.” With opposition leader Tundu Lissu jailed on treason charges amid ICC probes into President Samia Suluhu for crimes against humanity, and the EU Parliament’s fresh condemnation, this crackdown risks unraveling US-Tanzania security pacts and $500M+ annual aid. As Beijing eyes East Africa’s minerals and ports, does Washington’s human rights hammer peel Dar from China’s orbit or ignite a proxy rift in the Horn, where autocratic backsliding threatens AU stability and refugee flows?

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