Blasts Heard in Zimbabwe Capital as Army Splits With Mugabe

Explosions were heard in the Zimbabwean capital, Harare, early Wednesday after soldiers and several armored vehicles were seen in the city amid a deepening split between the military and the government of 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe.

“I was woken up at about 1.10 a.m. by a distant explosion that shook the bed -- two others since then,” Roger Stringer, who lives in Harare’s Mount Pleasant suburb, said by phone.


The reports of explosions came after Zimbabwe’s ruling party called armed forces commander Constantine Chiwenga’s criticism of Mugabe’s administration “treasonable” and intended to incite insurrection in the southern African nation. Reuters reported that soldiers have taken over the state-owned Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corp. The U.S. embassy said in a Twitter post that it would have a minimal staff Wednesday “due to ongoing uncertainty in Zimbabwe.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-15/blast-heard-in-north-of-zimbabwe-s-capital-witness-says