During a press conference on June 4, Senegalese police showed the press a series of video clips that they claimed documented the presence of armed protesters at recent demonstrations. However, the full videos, which have been widely circulating on social media, show the same armed individuals alongside the police. So who are these armed men? And whose side are they on?
"On this recording, you can see a man armed with a military weapon. He knows what he is doing, he knows how to use his weapon. You can see that he isn’t there to protest.” These were the words of the Senegalese head of police Mohamadou Gueye to the press as he showed them videos filmed during recent protests at a press conference held on June 4. The footage shows a man wearing a red jersey with a white “9” on it, firing at a target off-screen. Another man, also in civilian clothes, throws a projectile in the same direction.
