HARARE,
Zimbabwe — Zimbabwe’s military said early Wednesday that it had taken
custody of President Robert Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state and
one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, in what increasingly appeared
to be a military takeover in the southern African nation.
After
apparently seizing the state broadcaster, ZBC, two uniformed officers
said in a short predawn announcement that “the situation in our country
has moved to another level.” While denying that the military had seized
power, they said that Mr. Mugabe and his family “are safe and sound, and
their security is guaranteed.”
“We
are only targeting criminals around him who are committing crimes that
are causing social and economic suffering in the country in order to
bring them to justice,” said the main speaker, who was identified as
Maj. Gen. S. B. Moyo, the army’s chief of staff.
General
Moyo — who was not widely known to the public but who was considered
close to the commander of the Zimbabwe Defense Forces, Gen. Constantine
Chiwenga — warned that “any provocation will be met with an appropriate
response.”
Around
6 a.m. on Wednesday, taxis were running on the main roads leading to
central Harare and people seemed to be making their way to work. Some
soldiers could be seen on the main roads but were not stopping
commuters.
After
the short announcement, commercials on farming and corn seeds appeared
on the state broadcaster. There was no further clarification of the
whereabouts or status of Mr. Mugabe, 93, who is the only leader his
nation has known since independence in 1980.
The office of President Jacob Zuma of South Africa said in a statement that Mr. Zuma and Mr. Mugabe had spoken.
Mr. Mugabe “indicated that he was confined to his home but said that he
was fine,” the statement said. It said that South Africa was in contact
with the Zimbabwean military.
Asked
in a brief telephone interview about reports of a possible coup,
Zimbabwe’s information minister, Simon Khaya Moyo, said, “What can I
say? I don’t know about that.” He did not elaborate.
The
television announcement came after a long night of rumors and sketchy
reports in Harare that a coup might be underway. The day before, in a
remarkable act of defiance, General Chiwenga had warned that “when it
comes to matters of protecting our revolution, the military will not
hesitate to step in.”
General
Chiwenga visited China last week and met with top military officials
there. Asked Wednesday whether he had informed them of plans for a
military takeover, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said he
was “not aware of the details” but that the visit had been “a normal
military exchange,” The Associated Press reported.
China
and Zimbabwe have long been allies, and Mr. Mugabe has been warmly
welcomed on regular visits to Beijing. Mr. Mnangagwa went to China for
military training in the 1960s, when China supported Mr. Mugabe’s
Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army.
General Chiwenga was considered close to Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, whom Mr. Mugabe summarily expelled
from the government and the governing ZANU-PF party last week. The move
was widely seen as clearing the path for Mr. Mugabe’s wife, Grace, 52,
who had been amassing growing political power in the past two years as
her aging husband’s health declined visibly.
Since
his removal, the whereabouts of Mr. Mnangagwa, who like Mr. Mugabe was a
veteran of the country’s struggle for independence, has been shrouded
in mystery.
The
question of who will succeed Mr. Mugabe has long haunted Zimbabwe and
its political class and led to conflicts among its members even as the
country’s once-promising economy shriveled.
In
Harare, as uncertainty over the political situation grew overnight,
foreign embassies warned their citizens to stay indoors on Wednesday.
The United States Embassy said on its website that “as a result of the
ongoing political uncertainty through the night, the ambassador has
instructed all employees to remain home tomorrow.”
American citizens, the embassy said, “are encouraged to shelter in place until further notice.”
On
Tuesday, neither the military nor Mr. Mugabe issued any public
statements even as rumors of a possible coup surfaced on social media
and in the streets. But Mr. Moyo asserted in a statement that “the
ruling ZANU-PF reaffirms the primacy of politics over the gun.”
Mr.
Moyo, who is also the party’s national secretary for information and
publicity, said the statement by General Chiwenga “suggests treasonable
conduct on his part as this was meant to incite insurrection and violent
challenge to constitutional order.”
“Purporting
to speak on behalf of the Zimbabwe Defense Forces,” he said, “was not
only surprising but was an outrageous vitiation of professional
soldiership and his wartime record as high-ranking freedom fighter,
entrusted with command responsibilities in a free and democratic
Zimbabwe.”
Mr.
Moyo’s statement, broadcast during the evening news hour on state
television, came hours after a leader of the party’s Youth League made
similar remarks at the ZANU-PF headquarters in Harare.
Kudzanayi
Chipanga, the youth league’s secretary, suggested that military
officers unhappy with the government should first return to civilian
life if they wanted to become politicians.
“General
Chiwenga and all those in the security sector who wish to engage in
politics are free to throw their hats in the ring and not hide behind
the barrel of the gun,” said Mr. Chipanga, who became a favorite of
Zimbabwe’s first family after he helped organize a march last year in
support of Mr. Mugabe’s leadership.
The
youth league accused the general of siding with a faction loyal to Mr.
Mnangagwa. The league has urged that Mrs. Mugabe be endorsed as the new
vice president in a party conference scheduled for next month.
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