In Photos: Zimbabweans take to streets in anticipation of Robert Mugabe removal
By Jessica Vomiero
Global News
Posted November 19, 2017 12:24 pm EST
1 min read
This article is more than 7 years old and some information may not be up to date.
War Veterans leader Christopher Mutsvangwa (C) celebrates the dismissal of the president of the ruling ZANU-PF party on November 19, 2017 in Harare.
JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images
Zimbabwean citizens and delegates celebrated following the expulsion of President Robert Mugabe from the country’s ruling party on Sunday after 37 years in power.
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ZANU-PF fired the 93-year old Mugabe on Sunday and gave him less than 24 hours to either resign has head of state or face impeachment.
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In unbelievable scenes, the announcement was met by cheers from the 200 delegates packed into ZANU-PF’s Harare headquarters.
Mugabe’s support has dwindled in the four days since the army seized power in an attempt to force a peaceful end to his almost four decades in power with a de facto coup.
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Mugabe, the only leader the southern African nation has known since independence from Britain in 1980, was replaced by Emmerson Mnangagwa, the deputy he fired this month in a move which triggered Tuesday’s military intervention.
Mugabe was known by many names, including the “Grand Old Man” of African politics and the “Thinking Man’s Guerrilla.” While he was once known throughout the continent as an anti-colonial liberation hero, he would later proudly declare that he held a “degree in violence.”
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Political opposition to his rule grew in the 1990s as the economy deteriorated, during which time Mugabe seized thousands of white-owned farms, detained his political opponents and unleashed security forces to crush dissent.
On Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Zimbabwean capital Harare, singing, dancing and hugging soldiers in an outpouring of elation at Mugabe’s expected ejection.
People gesture and shout slogans during a demonstration demanding the resignation of Zimbabwe’s president on November 19, 2017 in Harare. (Photo by Belal Khaled/NurPhoto via Getty Images).
Protesters demonstrate outside the Embassy of Zimbabwe in London to call on the leader of the country Robert Mugabe to resign on November 18, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images).
Delegates celebrate after Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was dismissed as party leader at an extraordinary meeting of the ruling ZANU-PF’s central committee in Harare, Zimbabwe November 19, 2017. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo.
Protesters demonstrate outside the Embassy of Zimbabwe in London on Nov. 18, 2017 in anticipation of President Robert Mugabe’s resignation. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images).
Delegates celebrate after Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was dismissed as party leader at an extraordinary meeting of the ruling ZANU-PF’s central committee in Harare, Zimbabwe November 19, 2017. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo.
Protesters demonstrate outside the Embassy of Zimbabwe in London on Nov. 18, 2017 in anticipation of President Robert Mugabe’s resignation. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images).
Delegates of ruling ZANU-PF party reacts upon the annoucement of the party’s president dismissal on November 19, 2017 in Harare. (JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
A delegate of ruling ZANU-PF party reacts upon the annoucement of the party’s president dismissal on November 19, 2017 in Harare. (JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
Members and delegates of ruling ZANU-PF party react upon the annoucement of the party’s president dismissal on November 19, 2017 in Harare. (JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
Members and delegates of ruling ZANU-PF party react upon the annoucement of the party’s president dismissal on November 19, 2017 in Harare. (JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
Members of ruling ZANU-PF party react upon the annoucement of the party’s president dismissal on November 19, 2017 in Harare.(JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
War Veterans leader Christopher Mutsvangwa (R) celebrates the dismissal of the president of the ruling ZANU-PF party on November 19, 2017 in Harare. ( JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
The wife of new president of the ruling ZANU-PF party, Auxilia Mnangagwa (C) is congratulated on her reinstatement to the party on November 19, 2017 in Harare.( JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
The wife of new president of the ruling ZANU-PF party, Auxilia Mnangagwa is congratulated on her reinstatement to the party on November 19, 2017 in Harare.(JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images).
An African woman takes pictures with one of the armored vehicles in the streets of the capital Harare, Zimbabwe, on 19 November 2017, a day after huge crowds rallied peacefully in the capital for 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe to step down. (Photo by Belal Khaled/NurPhoto via Getty Images).
A Zimbabwean woman leads a prayer outdoors in in Harare Zimbabwe, on 19 November a day after huge crowds rallied peacefully in the capital for 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe to step down (Photo by Belal Khaled/NurPhoto via Getty Images).
Apostolic Christians conduct a religious service in a piece of open land in the capital city of Harare, Zimbabwe on November 19, 2017.A day after huge crowds rallied peacefully in the capital for 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe to step down (Photo by Belal Khaled/NurPhoto via Getty Images).
Residents attend a prayer meeting called to celebrate after Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was dismissed as party leader of the ruling ZANU-PF’s central committee in Harare, Zimbabwe, November 19, 2017. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo.
Delegates celebrate after Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe was dismissed as party leader at an extraordinary meeting of the ruling ZANU-PF’s central committee in Harare, Zimbabwe, November 19, 2017. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo.