In Zimbabwe, two white farmers who went missing after being abducted yesterday are reported to have been found alive. A reporter who saw the two taken to hospital said they had been badly beaten. In the last 24 hours, at least three people, one farmer and two supporters of an opposition movement, have been killed in the political unrest. The violence comes in the wake of illegal land occupations by supporters of President Robert Mugabe to reclaim farmlands they say the British stole from their ancestors.
When he returned home from Cuba today, Mr Mugabe refused to condemn the violence and said that whites should accept the consequences if they resisted the seizure of their lands. He said that the white farmers had been told they would not be protected if they incited violence. The President also expressed his desire to hold legislative elections as soon as possible.
The two supporters of the opposition MDC party were killed in a petrol bomb attack on their car. MDC officials have blamed members of President Mugabe's Zanu-PF party for the attack.
