Opposition rejects findings as government denies responsibility and disputes higher casualty claims.

A government appointed commission in Tanzania said Thursday that at least 518 people were killed in electoral violence last year, a figure far lower than opposition estimates and one that did not assign blame for the deaths.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared the winner of the October 29 election with 98 percent of the vote, in a contest where key opposition figures were barred from running.

The results sparked days of protests across the country, which were forcefully suppressed by security forces.

Opposition parties and religious groups claim that thousands were killed by security forces, while Western diplomats have estimated the death toll to be between 1,000 and 2,000.

Hassan portrayed the unrest as organised in advance and suggested foreign involvement. She said the commission found that the violence had been planned, coordinated, financed and carried out by individuals equipped and trained to cause destruction.

She also argued that conflicts within Africa are often driven by outside actors seeking to exploit the continent’s resources.

The findings were swiftly rejected by the opposition. John Kitoka of the Chadema party described the report as an attempt to conceal wrongdoing by the authorities.

Mohamed Chande Othman, who led the commission, said the figure of 518 deaths was not final. He dismissed reports of mass graves and allegations that bodies had been removed from hospital mortuaries, saying such claims could not be verified.

The report marked the first official government account of casualties, stating that 2,390 people were injured, including 120 police officers. However, it did not specify who was responsible for the violence.

Othman added that while some images circulating online were genuine, others had been altered using artificial intelligence.

He also said that some missing persons cases involved individuals who had disappeared voluntarily or staged their own abductions.