Zimbabwe's opposition has said it will press ahead with its campaign for next week's presidential run-off poll despite mounting violence.
The Movement for Democratic Change said 'withdrawing would not solve anything'.
Its leader Morgan Tsvangirai has been detained five times while campaigning this month and his deputy Tendai Biti is being held in custody on treason and subversion charges.
A Harare court today refused to dismiss the charges, saying there is reasonable suspicion that Mr Biti committed an offence, and remanded the case to 7 July. A conviction could carry a death sentence.
Meanwhile, President Robert Mugabe warned that he would not leave power until land is returned to the majority black population.
He has previously warned he was ready to fight to keep the opposition out of power.
Mr Mugabe embarked on a chaotic land reform programme at the turn of the decade which saw some 4,000 white-owned farms expropriated by the state.
He has repeatedly portrayed Mr Tsvangirai as a stooge of former colonial power Britain.
The opposition has dismissed his accusations, and has accused authorities of unleashing a campaign of violence ahead of the election that has left some 70 of their supporters dead.
Mr Tsvangirai has claimed the country is now run by what is essentially a military junta.
EU threatens more sanctions against Mugabe
The EU has threatened more sanctions against Mr Mugabe's regime, saying it stood ready to take further action against those behind the political violence.
In its draft summit conclusions, the EU said it was ‘deeply concerned’ by the surge in violence and intimidation in Zimbabwe ahead of next week's presidential run-off election.
Mr Mugabe faces Mr Tsvangirai, who topped the first round poll.
The EU draft said that violence and intimidation so far in the election build-up served only to ‘heighten further the fears of the Zimbabwean people and the international community about the conditions under which this poll, crucial for the future of Zimbabwe, will be held'.
It regretted that its offer to provide election monitors had been rejected.
The EU called on the Southern African Development Community and the African Union to deploy election monitors in significant numbers, and to ensure they stayed in place until the electoral process was completed and the results officially declared.
In June 2007, the EU strengthened its sanctions on the Mugabe regime, which have been in place since 2002, citing repression of the opposition and repeated human rights violations.
The European Commission is the biggest single aid donor to Zimbabwe, providing €90.7m last year in humanitarian assistance and other support.
