Zimbabwe expels Libyan ambassador for defection

Zimbabwe expelled the Libyan ambassador and his staff on Tuesday for switching allegiance to Libya's ruling interim council, the foreign minister said. President Robert Mugabe is a strong ally of deposed Libyan ruler Muammar Qadhafi, who had signed several economic deals with Harare, including an agreement to supply fuel.
Foreign Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, a minister from Mugabe's ZANU-PF party in a fragile coalition with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, said ambassador Taher Elmagrahi and his staff had lost their diplomatic status after burning the flag used by the Qadhafi administration.