Zimbabwean police have detained more than 500 people in a crackdown after violent protests against President Robert Mugabe last week, the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said Monday.
A strike Tuesday and Wednesday shut factories and shops and sparked mob violence in the biggest protest since 2000 against Mugabe’s 23-year rule.
“We are fast losing count of people being detained and tortured because it’s now happening every hour,” MDC spokesman Paul-Themba Nyathi said.
Police denied torture allegations and said 200 MDC members were charged with violence. They said about 50 MDC supporters were still in detention.
In Washington, the State Department condemned the government’s crackdown. “The United States demands that the Zimbabwe government immediately cease its campaign of violent repression,” said spokesman Richard Boucher.
