Tanzania has blocked access to the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), hours after the official account of the Tanzania Police Force was hacked and used to spread false claims about the death of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
According to NetBlocks, an internet freedom watchdog, the platform became inaccessible across all major Tanzanian internet service providers, including Halotel, Airtel, Liquid Telecom, Habari Node, and Vodacom, shortly after 9 p.m. East Africa Time on Tuesday.
“Live metrics show X… has become unreachable on major internet providers in Tanzania; the incident comes as a compromised police account posts claims the President has died, angering the country’s leadership,” NetBlocks said in a Mastodon update.
The police’s official X handle, @tanpol, which has over 470,000 followers, was breached early Tuesday. The attackers posted a series of alarming messages, including a live broadcast falsely announcing the President’s death. Authorities have since regained control of the account and stated that an investigation is underway to identify and apprehend the culprits.
The digital attack comes amid heightened political tension in Tanzania, following the arrest and deportation of several high-profile East African legal professionals and activists who had arrived to observe opposition leader Tundu Lissu’s treason trial. Among those detained at Julius Nyerere International Airport were PLP Kenya leader Martha Karua, former Kenyan Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, Law Society of Kenya council member Gloria Kimani, and activists Lynn Ngugi, Hanifa Adan, and Hussein Khalid. All have since been deported.
In a televised address on Monday during the launch of Tanzania’s new foreign policy, President Suluhu condemned what she called growing interference by foreign activists. “We have started to observe a trend in which activists from within our region are attempting to intrude and interfere in our affairs,” she said, instructing security forces not to tolerate such interventions.
Meanwhile, concerns are mounting over the fate of Kenyan journalist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire, who were reportedly detained by plainclothes officers in Dar es Salaam. Amnesty International has raised alarm after their Tanzanian lawyers were informed they would be deported, yet their whereabouts remain unknown.
The crackdown has triggered a wave of criticism, with human rights groups warning that President Suluhu’s actions signal a return to the authoritarian practices seen under her predecessor, John Magufuli. As the country grapples with digital censorship and regional diplomatic strain, questions are being raised about the state of civil liberties and press freedom in East Africa’s second-largest economy.
Write By Rodney Mbua
