Coup underway in Zimbabwe?

Is it finally happening? Is Robert Mugabe about to be ousted?

After sacking his vice-President at the request of his wife, Grace, the leader of the army gave Mugabe an ultimatum to reinstate him.

Apparently, today tanks rolled into Harare.

A coup is reportedly under way in Zimbabwe, with reports on social media claiming that the head of Zimbabwe military Constantino Chiwenga has given President Robert Mugabe 24 hours to vacate office after sacking his vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa.

New24

I have just been texting with a Zimbabwean friend who has family in Harare and he has confirmed that there is definitely a situation developing on but nothing is clear.
There has not been any violence or clashes as yet.

It could just be a "show of force" by the army. If it is, expect heads to roll tomorrow. Literally. Mugabe and his supporters (G40) will not take this lightly.

a reply to: deltaalphanovember

Wow.
A nasty dictatorship might be replaced....
By another nasty dictatorship..

That's progress.

a reply to: Bluntone22

Sad but true, and a lot of good, decent people get caught in the cross-fire.

There is going to be a scramble between the various factions for power so they can get control over what little is left the country. It's been happening for a while, but the latest moves positioning Grace Mugabe for the presidency seems to be the final straw.

I see your in South Africa... Mostly people in America don't know what think about Africa. Sort of a 'meh' moment, bunch of shubangi's killing each other with spears and machete's, killing white farmers, kidnapping girls and woman.

But whether it's truth or fiction, most people don't know or pay attention. It's hard to compete with Trump, Putin and world news.


"Four tanks have been seen heading towards Zimbabwe’s capital Harare on Tuesday afternoon as a row between President Robert Mugabe and the head of the armed forces looked set to escalate." it's almost ..... comedic , four tanks. I guess it wouldn't be if they were aimed at me.
The News... www.yahoo.com...

Well... not much to comment. I hope civilians can stay out of the way.
Frankly I had to look at a map to find it...... left of Madagascar.... in the South

yeah I saw this also,

I don't keep massively uptodate with whats coming out of Africa but it kind of feels like this coup has came out of nowhere.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
yeah I saw this also,

I don't keep massively uptodate with whats coming out of Africa but it kind of feels like this coup has came out of nowhere.

Not true, the show country has been on life-support for decades.

Mugabe will just fly off with his people to somewhere like UAE, somewhere he can't be deported from and live in opulent luxury off the billions he's already salted away. In other words "do an Idi".

originally posted by: Aliensun

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
yeah I saw this also,

I don't keep massively uptodate with whats coming out of Africa but it kind of feels like this coup has came out of nowhere.

Not true, the show country has been on life-support for decades.

yeah I know that what I mean is that I had no idea a coup was on the cards.

I know how fragile the country has been I just had no idea it was close to getting to this point.

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

I am surprised it has taken so long but Mugabe has been a master and playing off his opponents against each other and promising things like more land to the poor or landless everytime there is an election.
Problem is, he is 93 odd years old, literally on his last legs and can no longer play the puppet master. Everyone beneath him is now fighting to position themselves for his death. A few people cannot wait that long, so it looks like they want to hasten his demise.

As a South African, our own country is very shaky at the moment, and the last thing we need is a bloody civil war on our border, with the inevitable huge numbers of refugees that will flood south.

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin

originally posted by: Aliensun

originally posted by: OtherSideOfTheCoin
yeah I saw this also,

I don't keep massively uptodate with whats coming out of Africa but it kind of feels like this coup has came out of nowhere.

Not true, the show country has been on life-support for decades.

yeah I know that what I mean is that I had no idea a coup was on the cards.

I know how fragile the country has been I just had no idea it was close to getting to this point.

You must take in consideration that such events are rarely announced in advance, and as mentioned what goes on down there rarely makes the big time news as it can't be criticized to openly as a failed country since the turn over for a couple of reason.

a reply to: Plotus

I know what you mean - everytime I read of another mass killing in the US, I also go "meh, crazy Americans". It seems to happen so often.

That does not mean that I do not care when innocent people are killed but it is all a matter of geographical perspective.

originally posted by: Plotus

"Four tanks have been seen heading towards Zimbabwe’s capital Harare on Tuesday afternoon as a row between President Robert Mugabe and the head of the armed forces looked set to escalate." it's almost ..... comedic , four tanks. I guess it wouldn't be if they were aimed at me.
The News... www.yahoo.com...

Well... not much to comment. I hope civilians can stay out of the way.

...and one of them broke down! looking at the pics, they don't seem to be tanks but rather tracked armoured personnel carriers (APC). Russian design?

Then you see things like this which gives you hope they will succeed.
www.youtube.com...

a reply to: deltaalphanovember

And to swing another way, all it may take is one individual standing stoically in front of those tanks.
Let us hope that a "house cleaning" does not destroy the country any further. That old saying from Viet Nam, "we had to destroy the village to save it," is not comforting.

a reply to: deltaalphanovember

Actually it looks the Chinese Type 89 / 90 APC or variant.

The Type 89, also known as ZSD 89 or YW 534, is a tracked armored personnel carrier. It is a successor of the Type 63 armored personnel carrier. The Type 89 has many design details in common with the Type 63, however the it is slightly larger overall. It was manufactured by NORINCO and powered by a German Deutz diesel. The Type 89 is in service with the Chinese Army. The base model of the Type 89 is fully amphibious with propulsion once in the water being provided by the tracks. Troops enter the vehicle via a single door in the hull rear. Once inside there are several ball-and-socket firing ports for the occupants, one being in the entry door, and periscopes are provided to allow observation of the battlefield for the occupants

link

originally posted by: Plotus
Then you see things like this which gives you hope they will succeed.
www.youtube.com...

Never heard of that before ... it gives one hope.

But it is not happening down South ...

originally posted by: deltaalphanovember

originally posted by: Plotus
Then you see things like this which gives you hope they will succeed.
www.youtube.com...

Never heard of that before ... it gives one hope.

But it is not happening down South ...

Right.... still one wishes...

Hopefully it succeeds.

Robert Mugabe is a freakin' nutjob.

a reply to: projectvxn

He is highly intelligent, and remarkably sane. Many people have under-estimated him.

But is he is a very very bad man and the world will be a better place when he is gone.

Unfortunately there is a long line of very bad, not so intelligent and possibly insane people hoping to succeed him.