15, November 2017
Zimbabwe military denies coup rumors following blast reports 0
Zimbabwean military officers have denied rumors of a coup after reports of explosions in the capital Harare. The military made the announcement during a live broadcast early on Wednesday, stressing that President Robert Mugabe was safe.
The announcement comes shortly after three explosions were reported in Harare. The US embassy also released a statement in which it said it will be closed on Wednesday amid what it called ongoing uncertainty. Britain has also advised its citizens residing in the country to avoid leaving their homes.
Zimbabwe was on edge Tuesday as armored personnel carriers were seen outside the capital a day after the army commander threatened to “step in” to calm political tensions over the president’s firing of his deputy. The Associated Press saw three armored personnel carriers with several soldiers in a convoy on a road heading toward an army barracks just outside the capital, Harare.
While it is routine for armored personnel carriers to move along that route, the timing heightened unease in this southern African country that for the first time is seeing an open rift between the military and 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe. The military has been a key pillar of Mugabe’s power since independence from white minority rule in 1980.
Mugabe last week fired Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa and accused him of plotting to take power, including through witchcraft. Mnangagwa, who enjoyed the backing of the military and was once seen as a potential successor to Mugabe, fled the country and said he and his family had been threatened.
Over 100 senior officials allegedly supporting him have been listed for disciplinary measures by a faction associated with Mugabe’s wife, Grace Mugabe.
The first lady, whose political profile has risen in the past few years, now appears positioned to replace Mnangagwa at a special conference of the ruling party in December, leading many in Zimbabwe to suspect that she could succeed her husband as president.
On Monday, army commander Constantino Chiwenga issued an unprecedented statement saying purges against senior ruling ZANU-PF party officials linked to the 1970s liberation war should end “forthwith.”
“We must remind those behind the current treacherous shenanigans that when it comes to matters of protecting our revolution, the military will not hesitate to step in,” the army commander said.
Mugabe did not respond to the military statement, and government spokesman Simon Khaya Moyo said only the president could respond. The state-run broadcaster did not report on the statement.
The ruling party’s youth league, aligned to the first lady, on Tuesday criticized the army commander’s statement, saying youth were “ready to die for Mugabe.”
The army spokesman was not immediately available for comment Tuesday. State broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation was operating as usual and the capital remained calm.
Frustration has been growing in once-prosperous Zimbabwe as the economy collapses under Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state. The country was shaken last year by the biggest anti-government protests in a decade, and Mugabe’s appointment of a minister for cybersecurity last month was criticized by activists as a crackdown on social media users.
Source: Presstv
15, November 2017
Mugabe talks to Zuma, confirms ‘house arrest’ 0
Zimbabwe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, says the series of military activities underway in the country mark a “bloodless transition” of power from long-time President Robert Mugabe.
The army has deployed soldiers to the streets across the capital. Soldiers and armored vehicles have blocked roads to the main government offices, the parliament, and the courts in central Harare. The army has also taken over the headquarters of the national broadcaster.
In a series of tweets on Wednesday, Mugabe’s own ruling party denied that the totality of those activities amounted to a coup.
“Zimbabwe has not had a coup. There has been a decision to intervene because our constitution had been undermined, in the interim Comrade E Mnagngawa will be president of ZANU PF as per the constitution of our revolutionary organization,” it said in one tweet, referring to Emmerson Mnangagwa, who Mugabe sacked as his vice president earlier in the week.
“Last night the first family was detained and are safe, both for the constitution and the sanity of the nation this was necessary. Neither Zimbabwe nor ZANU are owned by Mugabe and his wife,” it said in another.
It was not clear who exactly was posting the tweets, and whether they reflected the mentality of the entire party.
Zimbabwean soldiers overran the headquarters of the state broadcaster and ordered staff to leave overnight Tuesday. After taking control of the national broadcaster, a spokesman for the military interrupted taped programming and read out a statement early on Wednesday.
“To both our people and the world beyond our borders, we wish to make it abundantly clear that this is not a military takeover of government,” said Major General S.B. Moyo.
He insisted that the army had taken action to “target criminals,” who were “committing crimes that are causing social and economic suffering” and was planning to “bring them to justice.”
“As soon as we have accomplished our mission, we expect that the situation will return to normalcy,” he added.
The statement did not clarify who it was referring to as “criminals” around Mugabe, but a government source later told Reuters that Finance Minister Ignatius Chombo had been among those detained. The minister was a leading member of the so-called ‘G40’ faction of the ZANU-PF party, run by the president’s wife, Grace Mugabe.
Moyo called on security services to “co-operate for the good of our country” and warned that any provocation would “be met with an appropriate response.”
He said all soldiers on leave “should return to barracks immediately.”
The major general also urged the public to remain calm but called on them “to limit unnecessary movement.”
Shortly after the army seized the national broadcaster, a number of loud explosions were heard in the capital, Harare.
Mugabe talks to Zuma, confirms ‘house arrest’
Later in the day, Mugabe talked to South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma on the phone, confirming that he was under house arrest but that he was fine, Zuma’s office said in a statement.
Zuma said he was sending special envoys to Zimbabwe to meet with Mugabe and the Zimbabwean Defense Force.
The South African president would be sending the envoy in his capacity as chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which is an inter-governmental organization among 16 southern African states. The organization works to resolve economic and political challenges faced by the regional countries.
And so begins a coup
Zimbabwe has been on edge since Monday, when army chief General Constantino Chiweng held a press conference warning that the army was prepared to act to end purges within Mugabe’s ZANU-PF party. The ruling party accused the army chief of “treasonable conduct.”
Political tension started to rise in the South African country after Mugabe, in a sudden decision, sacked Mnangagwa this week.
Mnangagwa had previously been considered the most likely to succeed the president if Mugabe resigned or died while in power. His sudden dismissal, however, raised speculations that Mugabe was clearing the way for his wife, Grace, to take the position.
Mugabe, 93, came to power in the 1980s. He has been the longest serving leader in Africa.
‘Coup by any name’
A former political aide to ex-Zimbabwean prime minister Morgan Tsvangari, told the CNN that the army’s action was “a coup by any other name.”
“They are being very careful in their words,” said Alex Magaisa. “They might be trying to give a fig leaf to the notion that President Mugabe is still the leader. But de facto they are obviously the military force.”
US, UK issue warnings to citizens
The United States and the United Kingdom both issued warnings to their citizens inside the African country.
US State Department encouraged the Americans in the country to “shelter in place until further notice” due to ongoing uncertainty and political unrest. A US embassy spokesman in Zimbabwe also said the embassy would be closed to the public on Wednesday.
The UK Foreign Office, meanwhile, advised Britons in Zimbabwe to avoid demonstrations and rallies, saying it was “monitoring the situation closely.”
Culled from Presstv