Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has threatened to expel the U.S. ambassador, James McGee, whom he accuses of interfering in the country's affairs.
Speaking at a campaign rally in the capital, Harare Sunday, Mr. Mugabe said if McGee continues to meddle, he will kick the ambassador out of the country.
McGee has accused the president's ZANU-PF party of using systematic violence to intimidate opponents ahead of the June 27 presidential run-off.
In an interview with the Associated Press this week, McGee also urged presidential challenger Morgan Tsvangirai to return to Zimbabwe. Mr. Tsvangirai came home Saturday after more than seven weeks abroad.
Today's speech by Mr. Mugabe marked the official start of his run-off campaign.
Mr. Tsvangirai beat the president in elections held March 29th, but fell short of the votes needed to avoid a run-off.
Earlier this month, McGee and other diplomats had two faceoffs with Zimbabwean police as they visited hospitals treating victims of post-election violence. On both occasions McGee refused to accompany police to a local station.
On Wednesday, Zimbabwe's Foreign Ministry summoned McGee and gave him what it called a "first warning" about his activities.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
