Zimbabwe police have arrested more than 22,000 people as a blitz on illegal stores and shantytowns gathers pace, sending homeless people fleeing to the countryside, according to today's the state Heraldnewspaper.
The newspaper said police had arrested 22,735 people in a campaign the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) has called a political vendetta against residents of its urban strongholds.
MDC leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, whose party gains overwhelming support from urban areas, denounced the crackdown and repeated calls for people to mobilise resistance.
"Property worth millions of dollars has gone up in flames. Families are out in the open - without jobs, without income, without shelter without support," Mr Tsvangirai told a news conference.
"Overnight, Zimbabwe has a massive internal refugee population in its urban areas."
Rights group Amnesty International also condemned the crackdown as a "flagrant disregard for internationally recognised human rights" and said people should be compensated for property destroyed by the government.
Mr Mugabe's government says the campaign is meant to stamp out black market trading and other crime in slums around the capital Harare and other cities.
The arrests were condemned by the US which warned that a violent backlash could follow the crackdown. In a statement, State Department spokeswoman Nancy Beck noted that police had clashed with shanty-dwellers during the exercise and warned its citizens in the country to be cautious.