One protester killed in Benin days before polls: Health official

Five others wounded by gunfire after troops cleared protesters in the opposition stronghold of Save.

One person has been killed and six others have been wounded by gunfire in central Benin, according to a local health official said, after troops cleared protesters days before presidential elections. Protests have erupted in opposition bastions in the lead-up to Sunday’s election, which critics say is skewed in favour of President Patrice Talon after the main opposition leaders were sidelined in a crackdown. A column of military vehicles arrived early on Thursday to disperse demonstrators in the central city of Save, a flashpoint town of protests two years ago, where makeshift barricades of trees and tyres blocked a major road.