Autopsy shows dead Senegal student suffered multiple traumas

A Senegalese student who died during a university police intervention that shook the nation suffered "multiple traumas" and "massive internal bleeding", according to an autopsy report circulated widely in Senegalese media.

Medical student Abdoulaye Ba died on the campus of Cheikh Anta Diop University (UCAD) in the capital Dakar a week ago during the unrest, in circumstances that remain unclear.

The police action followed several days of student protests to demand payment of stipend arrears, which turned violent.

The autopsy, which was reported widely over the weekend in the west African country's media but which has not been independently verified by AFP, indicates multiple traumas to the chest and skull "complicated by massive internal bleeding".

The report said the injuries allowed for the "ruling out of an isolated natural cause".

The findings "point to a major traumatic event that led to acute cardiorespiratory failure secondary to multiple internal haemorrhages".

A statement by the public prosecutor on Saturday said that "the available evidence does not corroborate the rumours of physical violence inflicted on the victim"

The remarks prompted a reaction by the UCAD student association collective, which accused the prosecutor of "stirring up confusion".

"We demand that the full truth be revealed about the circumstances surrounding the death of our comrade Abdoulaye Ba," the collective said in its statement on Monday.

The student group had led the protests that resulted in the clashes and asserted last week that Ba had been "brutally tortured to death by the police".

At a press conference, the government described the student's death as a "tragedy" and admitted to "police misconduct".

But Interior Minister Mouhamadou Bamba Cisse also justified the intervention by accusing students of attempting to destroy university campus infrastructure, citing video evidence.

Video filmed by students and shared on social media showed the violence between security forces and students.

In some of the footage, security forces are seen entering university grounds and firing tear gas into buildings while students retaliated by throwing stones.

In one video authenticated by AFP, police officers are seen striking a screaming man with blunt instruments.