Police stock up on tear-gas and grenades

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Written by zimsupplies

Monday, 18 February 2008 15:12

BY STAFF REPORTER
HARARE
The Mugabe regime has reportedly splashed out US$2m in scarce foreign currency to import tear-gas and other anti-riot material from China and Israel.
According to sources, tear-gas canisters were delivered to the Police Support Unit Headquarters in Harare, together with pepper spray, toxic dye and grenades such as those used on University of Zimbabwe students in 2002. Several students were left with permanent injuries.
"These materials are already being distributed to police stations across the whole country," a senior source at PGHQ said. "Some shall be handed over to the army and Police Support Unit. Some we have used before but others, such as a toxic purple dye imported from China, are wholly new to us but compatible with the water canons we have."
Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi said: "I cannot discuss security matters", while police spokesman Oliver Mandipaka said he was not the right person to comment on the issue.
"Those materials were imported from Israel and China at a cost around US$2m," a government official said, on condition of anonymity. "Some of the things were purchased from the same manufacturer that supplied the water canons in 2002."
In 2002, the Mugabe regime bought anti-riot equipment from Kibbutz Beit Alfa, which included customised anti-riot tankers, gas masks and microscopic laser guns, similar to those used by Israeli forces against the Palestinian protesters in their bitter clashes. The tankers that were supplied to Zimbabwe are of model RCU 4500 I based on an advanced computer-controlled jet pulse system and can fire up to 500 metres.

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