World Christian organisations have praised government and opposition leaders for signing the Memorandum of Understanding that paves the way for negotiations towards a lasting resolution of the difficult political crisis in Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe's ruling ZANU-PF party and two factions of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change begun formal talks on Thursday in South Africa in an effort to solve the country's political crisis.

DIVISIONS within Zanu PF, which appeared to have disappeared following the shock March 29 election setback, have returned to haunt the party after Vice-President Joseph Msika recently labelled some party functionaries in Matabeleland as sell-outs.

Many people were taken by surprise by the news that Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, and opposition Movement for Democratic Change's Morgan Tsvangirai, had agreed to meet after years of open animosity between the two.

WHAT kind of person is popular talk show hostess, Mai Rebecca Chisamba like in private?

NATIONAL vice-chairman of the Zimbabwe War Veterans' Association Cde Joseph Chinotimba has resigned from the Harare City Council where he was a chief inspector in the municipal police.

THREE ambassadors from South Korea, Nigeria and Mauritania -- which has just established diplomatic ties with Zimbabwe -- presented their credentials to President Mugabe at State House in Harare yesterday.

ADVISOR in the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Dr Munyaradzi Kereke and a senior manager in the bank Mr Mirirai Chiremba are the latest additions to the European Union targeted sanctions list as it intensifies its hate campaign against Zimbabwe.

GOVERNMENT is finalising the verification of the names of households in Mashonaland Central Province expected to benefit from the National Basic Commodity Supply Side Intervention programme launched by President Mugabe last week.

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries has admitted that Zimbabwean workers were grossly underpaid, earning an equivalent of US$8-US$10 per month in 2007.

TWENTY-TWO newly-elected councillors for Marondera Rural District Council were sworn in yesterday.

POLICE have arrested a regional manager with a local non-governmental organisation, Civic Trust, for allegedly peddling malicious falsehoods to the international media and hostile nations to Zimbabwe in a bid to portray the country as lawless.

THE newly-elected non-executive mayor for Chitungwiza Municipality, Israel Marange yesterday appeared at the Harare Magistrates' Courts charged with criminal abuse of duty after he allegedly received US$1 000 from his former guard as "token of appreciation" for facilitating his allocation of a residential stand.

THE Budding Writers' Association of Zimbabwe is launching a new HIV and Aids awareness project targeting young artistes.

A 34-YEAR-OLD man from Swereki Village in Beitbridge West was yesterday jailed for two years for poaching a giraffe and two impalas on the farm of Home Affairs Minister Cde Kembo Mohadi.

South Africa, the only African state to date to have signed a "strategic partnership agreement" with the European Union, is holding a summit with the EU today in Bordeaux, France.

THE Local Government Board has approved the appointment of Mr Japhet Kabanga as Bindura town clerk.

WHITE commercial farmers say they did not fake injuries during the hearing of the land case at the Sadc Tribunal in Namibia in a bid to attract sympathy from the judges.

TWO Zupco employees were yesterday arrested for allegedly stealing an assortment of spares and fittings valued at over $60 trillion from the company's workshop in Chinhoyi.

A NUMBER of non-governmental organisations in Harare have scaled down operations on home-based care activities because of financial constraints, a senior official with the National Aids Council has said.