Axe-wielding assailants tried to kill opposition leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai today but he escaped unhurt, his spokesman said.
Mr Tsvangirai was addressing a provincial assembly east of Harare when the attackers arrived in a convoy of eight vehicles, spokesman Mr William Bango said.
"They attacked our meeting. This was a clear assassination attempt on our president," Mr Bango said.
"Mr Tsvangirai is unhurt but Mr Tsvangirai also feels and believes that this is the beginning of a violent campaign for next year's parliamentary election."
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Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change is locked in an often-violent power struggle with President Robert Mugabe's ruling ZANU-PF.
There was no immediate independent account of the event.