.com | EXCLUSIVE: White farmer battles Mugabe’s top aide in ‘last minute’ scramble for land

Hollywood star Will Smith has just been to Victoria Falls – but did he stay on the Zimbabwe side or the Zambian side of the natural wonder? Harare – A white commercial farmer in Matabeleland South in southern Zimbabwe is battling to have President Robert Mugabe’s top aide leave a prime property, in what critics view as a “last minute” scramble for land akin to the biblical “last supper”. Ray Ndlukula, the deputy secretary for cabinet and president’s office, has laid siege on the farm located in Figtree amid revelations in court documents that are in News24’s possession that he has other properties in the province.

Deadly floods hit southern Zimbabwe, destroying many homes

From kitchen items to livestock and even her house, Assa Mkwananzi says she has “lost it all” to floods that have hit southern Zimbabwe. “We lost all our blankets, pots and cooking utensils, our goats and chickens as well because of the heavy rains,” Mkwananzi told The Associated Press in the southern district of Tsholotsho, about 200 kilometers north of Bulawayo.

Zimbabwe’s Mugabe marks 93rd birthday in opposition area

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is celebrating his 93rd birthday amid granite hills where ancient spirits are said to dwell, defying calls to resign after nearly four decades in power in a region known for opposing the man who says he’ll run again in 2018 elections. Thousands of government supporters, some wearing clothing adorned with Mugabe’s image, converged in Matabeleland on Saturday for a birthday bash and show of strength for the ruling ZANU-PF party, beset by squabbling in the past year as the elderly president weakened and factions, one including his wife Grace, sparred ahead of an expected power vacuum.

Rare frog, not seen since 1962, discovered in Zimbabwe

The Artholeptis troglodytes, also known as the “cave squeaker” because of its preferred habitat, was discovered in 1962 but there were no reported sightings of the elusive amphibian after that. An international “red list” of threatened species tagged them as critically endangered and possibly extinct.