HARARE – Jan Raath, a journalist with British newspaper The Times was arrested around 5 pm in Zimbabwe today over a story he wrote about President Robert Mugabe’s regime entering into a secret deal to sell Uranium to Iran.
Nehanda Radio understands at the time of the arrest Raath was with Harrison Nkomo, a lawyer with the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights. He was later released and asked to write an affidavit on the Zimbabwe-Iran uranium deal.
The Times story published on Saturday quoted outgoing deputy minister of mines Gift Chimanikire saying that Zimbabwe signed a deal with Iran to supply the Islamic republic with the raw materials needed to develop a nuclear weapon.
But Mines and Mining Development Minister Obert Mpofu told AFP “that’s fiction because I have never been asked by the Iranian government or anyone from Iran for mining concessions.”
“They never applied for mining licences whether to mine uranium or any other mineral. The country is not mining uranium. If Chimanikire told the reporter about an agreement to export uranium to Iran maybe it was in a dream,” Mpofu added.
According to the Zanu PF controlled Sunday Mail newspaper Zimbabwean police were looking for Jan Raath and Jerome Starkey, for “spreading falsehoods” in the uranium deal story.
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