Zimbabwe PM Involved in Suspicious Crash, his Wife Dies

Zimbabwe is thought to be the country where car crashes involving politicians are not considered as "accidental" and any incident of this kind raises suspicion of assault.

On Friday, Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was involved in a terrible car accident on a busy two-lane highway  but now he is in a stable condition, CNN reported. However, following the horrific crash, his wife Susan Tsvangirai died and his aide and driver were seriously injured. The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader was traveling with his wife from the capital, Harare, to his rural home near Buhera, when their Mercedes collided head-on with a heavy truck.

Members of Tsvangirai's political party, the Movement for Democratic Change, said that it was too early to be sure whether the crash is anything other than an accident. However, analysts say the crash is suspected of foul play as it's not the first time that a political foe of Mugabe, Zimbabwe president, is killed or injured in a car crash.

"I'm skeptical about any motor vehicle accident in Zimbabwe involving an opposition figure," said Tom McDonald, the U.S. ambassador to Zimbabwe from 1997 to 2001.

"President Mugabe has a history of strange car accidents when someone lo and behold dies -- it's sort of his M.O. of how they get rid of people they don't like."

His opinion is based on three other cases of politicians died in car crashes: the 2001 death of Defense Minister Moven Mahachi, Employment Minister Border Gezi's death in 1999 and the death of Elliot Manyika last year, a government minister and former regional governor.

"This is several," McDonald said. "So, when I hear that Tsvangirai was in an accident, it gives me pause."

Given that, McDonald asked for a full investigation  by outside authorities.

"There will undoubtedly be suspicions about the cause of the crash and whether there was foul play involved," said Jennifer Cooke, director of the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

Morgan Tsvangirai has been charged with treason twice and accused of plotting to assassinate Mugabe after running for president in 2002 against Mugabe, who has been the country's leader since it gained independence from Great Britain in 1980. With such a past, we wouldn't be surprised to find out that the tragic crash wasn't just a coincidence.