[They have been in jail for a year now. There is absolutely no proof that they really were mercenaries. There has been talk that once released back to South Africa they might be prosecuted over here too. I still think this could be an intelligence trick. We should never forget the possibility that there was high-level conniving behind the scenes and that this was planned. Don’t be surprised to find that South Africa itself is behind this one. Why? Because South African Intelligence “alerted” Zimbabwe of a planeload of “mercenaries” leaving the country. If they knew about the mercenaries – why then didn’t they stop the plane from taking off? The whole thing smells. This was also to “send a message” to “White males” who work as security guards and mercenaries elsewhere in the world. In my view, the real aim of the game was to scare men – both White and Black – who engage in “private security/military” work elsewhere in the world. This is a typical commie trick. Throw some innocent people in jail, make false claims, but do it, just to show them who really has the power. From the very first, it was completely obvious that these men were completely innocent. It appears they were really just a bunch of security guards on their way to protect a mine in the DRC (Zaire).

Note how some of the Whites in this are going to spend a couple more years rotting in a Zimbabwean prison hell-hole. Jan]

Sixty men linked to an alleged coup plot in Equatorial Guinea are due to be deported from Zimbabwe to South Africa after more than a year in custody.

Defence lawyer Alwyn Griebenow said they would be taken by bus from Harare to Beit Bridge border crossing, where immigration officials will meet them.

They are in good health apart from one with tuberculosis, he added.

Coup charges against the men were not proven, but they were convicted of breaking Zimbabwe’s immigration laws.

They will be reunited with their families before facing possible charges in South Africa, their lawyer said.

The alleged ring-leader of the plot, Briton Simon Mann, and the two pilots of the plane, remain in prison in Zimbabwe on longer sentences.

Weapons question

The men being released had been travelling on South African passports when they were arrested in March 2004 after their chartered plane touched down at Harare airport to pick up weapons. Zimbabwean prosecutors said they had been en-route to Equatorial Guinea to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo in the oil-rich country.

The men said the weapons were to be used for guarding diamond mines in Democratic Republic of Congo.

In Equatorial Guinea, 14 other people have been found guilty of charges linked to the coup plot, including plot leader Nick du Toit who received 34 years.

Sir Mark Thatcher, the son of former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was given a suspended jail term in South Africa and fined after agreeing a plea bargain to help investigators.

Previous reports said that there were 62 prisoners due for release but latest reports refer to 60.

Under South African law, they could be charged with engaging in military activities abroad without official permission.

Source: BBC URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/45387…/p>