Zimbabwean power-sharing talks would resume Friday-SA

(SomaliNet) Although Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe\'s top negotiator said there was no need for further negotiations South Africa said Zimbabwean power-sharing talks would resume on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Zimbabwean leader and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai have failed to reach agreement in over one month of talks that followed Mugabe\'s unopposed re-election in a ballot boycotted by Tsvangirai and condemned around the world.

Mugabe\'s government, in a sign of the growing desperation in Zimbabwe, lifted a ban on aid groups providing food and humanitarian assistance. They were banned ahead of the election, accused by Mugabe of helping the opposition.

All parties would participate in the negotiations in South Africa and no deadline for an end to the talks was set, said South Africa\'s deputy minister of foreign affairs Aziz Pahad.

\"We do hope that these talks can lead to the finalization of all outstanding matters, so that we can start with normalizing the economic, political and social situation in Zimbabwe,\" he said.

A South African foreign ministry official declined comment on whether the talks had resumed. An MDC official said he did not know.

Zimbabwe\'s state-owned Herald newspaper earlier quoted Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, chief ZANU-PF negotiator, as saying: \"There was no need for more talks since there was a deal already on the table that was waiting to be signed.\"-Reuters