Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa has survived a blast at a ruling ZANU-PF party rally in the city of Bulawayo, suggesting he was the target of an attack which left one of his deputies injured.
The blast on Saturday happened as the president and other politicians were walking off the stage at the White City stadium, where he had addressed thousands of supporters in advance of next month’s vote.
Mnangagwa, the 75-year-old leader of ZANU-PF, was not hurt and evacuated to Bulawayo state house, officials said.
The ZBC broadcaster later reported that Vice President Kembo Mohadi was injured in the leg and taken to a local hospital in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-biggest city.
Several others also suffered wounds, including the wife of Vice Presidents Constantino Chiwenga, a soldier and a number of ZANU-PF supporters.
In his first comments after the incident, Mnangagwa called the explosion a “cowardly act” which will not stop the ZANU-PF party from preparing for the July 30 elections.
He told the state broadcaster that an object “exploded a few inches away from me – but it is not my time”.
“I am used to these attempts,” he added. “I can assure you these are my normal enemies.”
Footage from the scene showed a cloud of smoke rising near the stage as medical staff rushed to treat those wounded.
State TV immediately cut its broadcast.
Witnesses said that the blast occurred as Mnangagwa, the leader of the ruling ZANU-PF party, was leaving the stage after finishing his speech.
“We are told several VIPs have been injured and other ZANU-PF supporters have also been injured,” Al Jazeera’s Haru Mutasa, reporting from Johannesburg in neighbouring South Africa, said.
“People on the ground say that people had to carry some of the injured in their cars to the local hospital in Bulawayo. Some of the injuries are in the legs and in the stomach – some are quite critical,” she added.
