Mugabe his first public appearance since the military seized control

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe his first public appearance since the military seized control of the country, attending a graduation ceremony at Harare's Open University on Friday morning. His the chancellor of the University of Zimbabwe and goes to the ceremony each year, we hope this will be his last visit before he resigns.

In an apparent display of defiance, the 93-year-old arrived at the ceremony on today dressed in a blue academic gown and tasselled hat. The event appears to allow him to project the image of leadership, even as calls for his departure after 37 years in power grow stronger. It came during an extraordinary series of negotiations with regional leaders. Zimbabwe's military said it was making "significant progress" in the talks while it pursues and arrests some allies of the leader and his wife. A senior source in Zanu-PF told Reuters news agency the party was due to meet on Friday to draft a motion to fire Mr Mugabe on Sunday. If Mr Mugabe still refuses to stand down, the party plans to impeach him on Tuesday, according to the source. Meanwhile Morgan Tsvangirai, a former prime minister and long-time opponent of Mr Mugabe, said he must resign "in the interest of the people". He added that "a transitional mechanism" would be needed to ensure stability.