37 die in Zanzibar riots

Zanzibar - Opposition protesters fought running battles with police on the semiautonomous islands of Zanzibar yesterday, and …

Zanzibar - Opposition protesters fought running battles with police on the semiautonomous islands of Zanzibar yesterday, and the death toll since Friday rose to at least 37.

The violence was worst on Pemba, the smaller of Zanzibar's main islands, where witnesses said at least 24 people had been killed, including four members of the security forces who were hacked and stoned to death by protesters.

A policeman was also beheaded in Pemba on Saturday. The clashes began after the opposition Civic United Front called demonstrations to demand a rerun of disputed elections on Zanzibar last year.

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