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The article reports that American bureaucrat Condoleezza Rice's confirmation hearing by the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee concerning the Iraq war was fierce at times, but it was her listing of Zimbabwe as an "outpost of tyranny" that created the real firestorm. While she did not go into specifics, it is clear that the American administration finds the political situation in Zimbabwe, one of Africa's strongest economies, unacceptable. In a statement, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe called Rice and the American administration "fascists." Many believe Zimbabwe's freedom set the stage for South Africa's move to multiracial democracy in the 1990s.

The verbal salvos over Zimbabwe's disputed election escalated Thursday, with the government accusing the opposition of treason, South Africa toughening its position by calling for the release of election results and the Zimbabwean opposition demanding that South Africa bow out as the mediator of the political standoff. Zimbabwe's government, in a state-run newspaper, said it had uncovered a plot by the opposition to conspire with Britain to topple President Robert Mugabe, who has led the nation since independence 28 years ago. The paper printed a 2,200-word document -- which British and opposition officials have dismissed as fake -- laying out a plan to ''bring about change at any cost.'' [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]