Okay, this just in from the “what the f*ck?” department. Two separate but probably related stories:
First up, armed Chinese soldiers have been seen on the streets of Mutare:
However … there was a surprise presence of Chinese soldiers armed with revolvers in the city. The Chinese, together with about 70 Zimbabwean senior army officers [...]

I haven’t been following things Zimbabwean quite so closely these past few days, as it’s become so disheartening and frustrating. The general strike called by the MDC has had only limited support, thanks to a combination of bad publicity - it’s not like ZTV or The Herald are going to give it any mention [...]