Staff Reporter

The Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) has warned that it will be moving large troops to Mashonaland Central Province as part of its military training and has urged the public to remain calm and not to panic.

In a statement yesterday, the ZDF said that it would deploy troops to six districts of Mashonaland Central Province between 22 September and 21 October 2022.

 “The Zimbabwe Defence Forces would like to inform the general public that it will be conducting a training exercise in Bindura, Mbire Muzarabani, Rushinga, Shamva and Mt Darwin districts of Mashonaland Central Province, from 22 September to 21 October 2022. This year’s training exercise is a follow up to a similar exercise conducted in Masvingo Province in 2021,” reads the statement.

According to ZDF, the intended training exercise is meant to sharpen and perfect operational skills for members of the Army.

“The training exercise is meant to sharpen and perfect operational skills so as to enhance the Zimbabwe Defence Forces capability to fulfil its mandate. The exercise involves the movement of a large number of troops and vehicles from Harare into Mashonaland Central Province. Therefore the general populace should not be surprised by these movements,” reads the statement.

From time to time, ZDF conducts military exercises to focus on simulation of real, full scale military operations in controlled hostile conditions in attempts to reproduce war time decisions and activities for training or to analyse the outcome of possible war time decisions.

The exercises are also part of a routine training that is conducted regularly in fulfilment of the forces’ constitutional mandate.