Zimbabwe's not-coup coup sees tense but calm Harare

[Daily Maverick] AFTERNOON THING with JOHN STUPART Wednesday, 15 November 2017 [We Buy Cars. SA's No. 1 car buying service.]( WHILE YOU WERE WORKING [Zimbabwe's coup blocks journalists, captures media]( The situation in Harare is proceeding at a thousand miles an hour since the first four armoured personnel carriers rolled into Zimbabwe's capital. Daily Maverick's own Richard Poplak has been detained at Harare's international airport, lending credence to the possibility of an outright media ban inside Zimbabwe. President Robert Mugabe and the first family, meanwhile, were reportedly detained while "criminals" were rounded up. [Political reaction to Zimbabwe issues forth]( PresidentJacob Zuma has condemned the not-coup coup, warning the military leadership in Zimbabwe that an army rulership will not be tolerated. Zuma deployed the Minister of Defence and the new Minister of State Security to Harare to meet with Mugabe and the Zimbabwean generals in charge. Harare has been described as "calm but tense" with diplomatic missions generally advising their staff to stay at home where possible. [ZANU-PF youth 'ready to die' for Mugabe]( The Zimbabwean ruling party's youth wing have said they are "ready to die" for President Mugabe. Mangling a Nelson Mandela quote, the group's leader Kudzai Chipanga stated that: "Defending the revolution and our leader and president is an ideal we live for and if need be it is a principle we are prepared to die for." With reports that several ZANU-PF Youth League members have been detained by the military, their mettle may yet be matched with their rhetoric. [South Africa deprived of 2023 Rugby World Cup]( Complaining at your loudest, it seems, can overturn a sure thing in terms of the Rugby World Cup. Despite gaining near unanimous support for its bid, South Africa has lost out the hosting of the 2023 Rugby World Cup to France. France had complained of South Africa's instability as a major problem. Apparently being a focal point of global terrorism is a preferable host location environment to excessive sunburn. — [We Buy Cars. SA's No. 1 car buying service.]( FEATURED ARTICLES [Zimbabwe: Mugabe tells Zuma that he is “confined” to his home, as SA envoy is en route to Harare]( [Zimbabwe: Mugabe tells Zuma that he is “confined” to his home, as SA envoy is en route to Harare]( BY PETER FABRICIUS [Zimbabwe: Army in control of state institutions, but insists not a coup]( [Zimbabwe: Army in control of state institutions, but insists not a coup]( BY SALLY NYAKANYANGA, PETER FABRICIUS and AFP. [#RWC2023: Shock move as France trumps South Africa as hosts]( [#RWC2023: Shock move as France trumps South Africa as hosts]( BY Antoinette Muller OPINIONISTAS [Where is Zuma’s real Declaration of Interests?]( [Where is Zuma’s real Declaration of Interests?]( A column by Mmusi Maimane [ANC National Conference: How it should work, how it does work, and what might actually happen]( [ANC National Conference: How it should work, how it does work, and what might actually happen]( A column by Oscar van Heerden [FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO A FRIEND]( Copyright © 2017 Daily Maverick, All rights reserved. You are receiving this mail because you are awesome and on the Daily Maverick First Thing subscriber list. [Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe](