Clashes between police and supporters of opposition politician Ousmane Sonko on Monday left one policeman dead in southern Senegal, police said.
Protests erupted in the town of Ziguinchor a day before a scheduled court appearance for 48-year-old Sonko, who is on trial for allegedly raping an employee at a beauty parlor where he went for a massage.
Sonko, who was also recently sentenced to a six-month suspended prison sentence for defaming and insulting the tourism minister, has denied the allegations.
He says he is the victim of a government plot to eliminate his eligibility to run for president in the 2024 presidential election.
When Sonko was arrested in 2021, at least 12 people were killed in several days of protests.