HARARE, Zimbabwe — Protests in Zimbabwe’s capital turned violent on Wednesday as demonstrators called the country’s elections a sham and armed soldiers swept the streets. At least three people were reported dead.
On Thursday, the army ordered the shutdown of Harare’s city center, shopkeepers told the local news media, but a presidential spokesman denied an order had been given. The Election Commission also said it would announced the results of Monday’s presidential election “very soon,” as the international community called for restraint.
The elections — the first since the fall of the longtime president, Robert Mugabe — had been largely peaceful. But large crowds of protesters supporting the opposition alliance gathered on Wednesday outside the Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare, the capital, as early results revealed a parliamentary victory for the governing party.
Police officers fired live ammunition to disperse protesters, who fought back with stones. Tear gas was also used on the demonstrators, and a military helicopter flew above the capital.
“If this fails, we will go physical,” Denis Chauke, an activist in his 20s who supports the opposition Movement for Democratic Change Alliance, said at the gate of the hotel. “We will fight for our win.”
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