Mass graves with piles of bodies are being dug in Mabwepande, Tanzania
Executive summary
Multiple independent news outlets and rights groups report allegations that mass graves have been dug near Dar es Salaam — including Mabwepande — following the October 29, 2025 election crackdown; AFP and outlets relaying AFP cite confidential officials who gave coordinates for suspected graves at Kondo and Mabwepande [1] [2] [3] [4]. CNN, Amnesty-linked reporting and rights coalitions say satellite imagery, videos and overflowing morgues show disturbed soil and clandestine burials at Kondo; human rights groups allege mass graves “especially in Mabwepande” and put the wider death toll in the hundreds to thousands [5] [6] [7] [8].
1. What reporters and rights groups are saying — fresh, converging allegations
AFP-sourced reporting quotes a senior government official who provided coordinates for suspected mass-grave sites at Kondo and Mabwepande; that account has been carried by multiple outlets including France24 and News24 [1] [3]. Rights coalitions and NGOs say morgues are overflowing and allege security forces buried victims clandestinely; Amnesty-linked coverage and a CNN investigation document geolocated videos, satellite images and eyewitness testimony pointing to recently disturbed soil consistent with mass burials near Dar es Salaam, notably at Kondo [6] [5]. A joint statement by rights groups claimed “at least 3,000 people have been murdered” since Oct. 29 and said authorities were “digging mass graves across Tanzania, especially in Mabwepande” [7].
2. Evidence on the record and its limits
The strongest public evidence reported so far combines witness testimony, buried-coordinate claims from a leaked/anonymous official, satellite imagery and on-the-ground videos showing disturbed earth near cemeteries and morgues under strain [5] [6] [1]. CNN’s forensic review of multiple videos found high-velocity rounds fired into crowds, which corroborates allegations of lethal force, and human-rights groups interpret the mortuary pressure and disturbed soil as consistent with clandestine burials [5] [6]. However, available sources do not cite a completed, independent forensic excavation of Mabwepande or a public, court-grade chain-of-custody exhumation report in those exact coordinates (not found in current reporting).
3. Numbers, casualties and competing tallies
Human-rights coalitions released a November statement asserting “at least 3,000” killed and thousands missing after the election, a figure widely cited by advocacy networks but not independently verified by an international forensic body in the items provided [7]. Other outlets describe “hundreds” killed based on UN estimates and CNN reporting; rights groups and local networks say the real toll could be far higher because of disappearances and alleged hidden burials [5] [6] [7]. The discrepancy reflects different methodologies: NGO aggregations of local reports versus international agencies relying on verified counts [7] [5].
4. Who is making the claims and what each side’s incentives might be
Claims come from a mix of international media (CNN, AFP), local human-rights coalitions and opposition sources; the anonymous government official who spoke to AFP framed their disclosure as an act of alarm and fear for personal safety [1] [2]. Rights groups have a clear mandate to document abuses and press for accountability; governments facing such accusations may have strong incentives to deny or deflect to avoid international sanctions or prosecutions. Available sources show multiple independent outlets reporting similar allegations, but they also show reliance on anonymous sources and advocacy-group statements — both powerful but imperfect forms of evidence [1] [6] [7].
5. What verification is still needed and what would change the picture
Credible, definitive confirmation would require independent forensic exhumations conducted under international standards, transparent release of satellite/geo-evidence with verified timestamps, access to morgues and burial registers, plus security-force records of detainees and deaths — none of which the provided sources show completed for Mabwepande specifically (available sources do not mention completed forensic exhumations of Mabwepande). International investigators or UN-mandated teams with unfettered access would be the decisive step toward legal accountability [5] [6].
6. How to read these reports responsibly
The pattern of reporting — overlapping witness accounts, satellite and video indicators, NGO tallies and an AFP-sourced official providing coordinates — creates a consistent, credible alarm that warrants urgent, independent investigation [1] [6] [5] [7]. But the precise scale, the full list of burial sites, and forensic confirmation for Mabwepande specifically remain unverified in the materials supplied here; readers should treat allegations as grave and substantiated enough to demand inquiry while recognizing that some claims rely on anonymous testimony and advocacy tallies rather than completed forensic reports [1] [7] [5].
Sources cited: AFP-derived press accounts [1] [2] [3] [4], CNN investigation and satellite/video reporting [5] [6], human-rights coalition statement alleging killings and graves [7], and an analytical overview by ImpACT International [8].