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Zimbabwe Leaders Sign Landmark Deal
Tsvangirai will become prime minister as parties come together
By Jason Farago
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Posted Sep 15, 08 6:57 AM CDT
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(Newser)
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Zimbabwe's rival political parties signed their landmark power-sharing deal today, in which Robert Mugabe will remain president while Morgan Tsvangirai will take on the new position of prime minister. The two factions of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change will receive a majority of cabinet posts, including the ministries responsible for the economy and the police. But Mugabe will still have control of the army, reports Reuters.
Mugabe, Tsvangirai, and breakaway MDC leader Arthur Mutambara signed the agreement amid cheering from regional leaders, including South Africa's president Thabo Mbeki, who negotiated the deal. While Zimbabweans hope the agreement will put the country on the road to recovery, observers are greeting it with caution —EU officials said that while they were putting planned sanctions on hold, they would not lift them definitively.