One dies, eighteen injured in Harare

A man has died in hospital in Zimbabwe following clashes late yesterday Tuesday between rival political groups in the capital, Harare.

At least eighteen others were injured in the trouble. The dead man is believed to have been an opposition supporter. The police did not say whether any arrests had been made, but accused activists of the main opposition party in Zimbabwe, Movement for Democratic Change, of attacking a surgery owned by a close ally of President Robert Mugabe and leader of the war veterans Dr Chenjerai Hunzvi .

There have been reports that the surgery was being used as a torture chamber where kidnapped opposition supporters were subjected to assaults. The clashes come as the main opposition party in Zimbabwe, Movement for Democratic Change, is seeking a court order to nullify the deadline for nominating parliamentary candidates -- a move that could delay next month's elections.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service