ZIMBABWE OPPOSITION LEADER HELD!

Mr Tsvangirai was reportedly seized by police at his home. Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai was briefly held by police, hours before a planned protest march in the capital, Harare. According to an opposition spokesman, Mr Tsvangirai was arrested at his home in Harare early in the morning, but was later released.

The march, called by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), is banned and there is tightened security in Harare. The MDC has mounted a legal appeal, and a magistrate is due to rule on the ban. The opposition want to protest at the state of Zimbabwe's failed economy, and are demanding a new constitution before elections are held, probably in March.

The MDC warned earlier this month that it would boycott the polls if it was not satisfied with preparations to ensure they would be free and fair. An MDC spokesman, Nelson Chamisa, confirmed to the BBC that Mr Tsvangirai has been released.

Mr Chamisa told the Associated Press news agency that the march would go ahead regardless. "Morgan Tsvangirai was not the only one who was going to march. We are not going to be intimidated," he said.

State radio said on Tuesday that police believed that the march, scheduled to begin at 1100 (0900 GMT), would not be peaceful and "it is not in the interest of public security for it to proceed".

The government last year said it would relax tough security laws which have been used to block political rallies.
BBC NEWS REPORT.