Tanzania’s armed forces chief Jacob Mkuda has called protesters who took part in yesterday’s violent anti-regime protests “criminals”, an expected characterization from the military as President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s stay in power is threatened.

“They are criminals. And the criminals must be arrested immediately,” Mkuda said speaking on public television TBC. “I request the criminals to stop immediately, otherwise the defense forces will take legal action against them,” he added.

On Wednesday, an AFP journalist said he saw armed soldiers impassively walking past protesters, suggesting they were supporting their movement. Similar incidents were recorded in many parts of Tanzania and the videos were posted on social networking sites. The opposition Chadema party even reported that “the army is protecting the demonstrations”.

The government has extended the curfew imposed yesterday in Dar es Salaam due to the post-election chaos. Police and soldiers patrolled the streets of the country’s largest city throughout the day.

On Wednesday, protesters defied a heavy security presence and attacked polling stations and set fire to a police station. A diplomatic source told AFP that the unrest continued into the night, despite the curfew. Information, which could not be verified, says 30 dead, according to this source.

This afternoon, downtown Dar es Salaam was virtually deserted but gunfire could be heard intermittently.

Riots were also reported in several other cities, including Songwe and Arusha.

Government spokesman Gerson Mshigwa announced via Instagram that civil servants will continue to work remotely tomorrow Friday and schools will remain closed. He urged citizens to stay in their homes.

Local media, which are tightly controlled, have not broadcast anything related to the election since Wednesday morning. Public television broadcast results from some districts suggesting Hassan won the election by a landslide over her rivals. The final results will be announced in two days.

Much of the world’s anger is directed at Hassan’s son, Abdul, who heads an “unofficial intervention force” of police and security services tasked with securing the election, according to specialist media outlet Africa Intelligence. This force is accused of kidnapping dissidents and in particular the popular Influencer “Nifer” who is accused of calling the citizens to protest.

The Chadema party was excluded from the election because it refused to sign the electoral code that did not include the reforms it had requested. The party’s leader, Tudu Lisu, was arrested in April and is on trial for high treason.

Due to the crisis, tourists have been blocked at Zanzibar airport. Some were sleeping on the floor, others no longer have money because it was impossible to make bank card payments. “It was the scariest thing I’ve ever experienced,” said a South African woman, describing seeing “masked men in black, heavily armed” outside the airport. “I just want to go home,” he said.

Dozens of tourists, including young children and the elderly, also remained as of Wednesday at Kilimanjaro Airport, a tourist destination. A French man there told AFP he felt “like a hostage” as “after the barricades, shootings and riots in the streets” today it was not certain they would be given food.

The U.S. Embassy in Tanzania urged American citizens in the country to stay at home or in their hotels because of the unrest and roadblocks.