THE death toll from anti-government protests in Senegal has reached 15, according to the police, as authorities in the capital city of Dakar strive to restore order and secure looted shops following two days of unrest.
‘Most of Dakar appeared quiet on Saturday, but tensions remained high after violent protests in several cities killed six people on Friday,’ a police spokesperson said, emphasising the escalating toll that has now reached 15 fatalities this week. The death count has surpassed that of the multi-day protests in 2021, initially triggered by supporters of opposition leader Ousmane Sonko over a rape trial they believe to be politically motivated.
Sonko, who denies any wrongdoing, was sentenced on Thursday, raising concerns that he may be barred from participating in the upcoming presidential election in February. His call to action spurred the latest wave of turmoil as protesters rallied against the authorities.
During the unrest, mobs vandalised shops and looted at least two gas station stores in Dakar’s Ouakam and Ngor districts. In densely populated Grand Yoff, a supermarket was set on fire and ransacked, leaving rubble and destruction in its wake. A resident named Khadija, near the supermarket, described the situation, saying, ‘The police couldn’t do anything, there were too many of them. The police had to leave after several attempts to control the crowd with tear-gas grenades.’
In response to the escalating violence, the government has deployed the army to support the riot police stationed throughout the city. Over a dozen soldiers guarded the vandalised gas station in Ouakam on Saturday, while some shop owners cautiously reopened their doors, although the streets r
emained unusually empty.
Abdou Ndiaye, the owner of a nearby corner shop, expressed his fear and apprehension due to the ongoing unrest, stating that it was the worst he had witnessed in his 15 years of business. ‘We are so scared because you don’t know when the crowds will come, and when they come they take… your goods, they are thieves,’ Ndiaye said, surrounded by stacks of food and household items in his storeroom. He added, ‘There are people who demonstrate, but there are others who do whatever they want.’
These protests are the latest in a series of opposition demonstrations in Senegal, a country long regarded as one of West Africa’s most stable democracies. The unrest was initially triggered by Sonko’s court case, coupled with concerns that President Macky Sall may seek to circumvent the two-term limit and run for re-election in February. President Sall has neither confirmed nor denied these speculations.
(with Reuters)
