Tsvangirai recovering in hospital

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Robert Mugabe visits Morgan Tsvangirai in hospital

Zimbabwe's Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai is recovering in hospital after a car crash on Friday which killed his wife Susan.

The couple were travelling near Harare when their car collided with a truck. President Robert Mugabe and his wife visited Mr Tsvangirai in hospital.

The MDC leader's party has said there is no reason to suspect foul play.

The BBC's southern Africa correspondent says all Zimbabwe's roads are in a poor state of repair after years of neglect.

After years of political battle, Mr Tsvangirai formed a unity government with President Robert Mugabe last month.

Morgan and Susan Tsvangirai had been married for 31 years

State TV reported that the 56-year-old prime minister had suffered some injuries to his head and neck.

It is thought that a lorry carrying freight crossed into the lane in which Mr Tsvangirai's 4x4 was travelling and side-swiped their vehicle, causing it to roll over three times.

The prime minister was on his way to his rural home in Buhera, where he planned to hold a weekend rally, when the crash occurred near Beatrice at about 1600 local time (1400 GMT) on Friday.

The AFP news agency quoted a minister in Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party as saying the driver of the lorry had been asleep at the wheel.

The BBC's Peter Biles, in Johannesburg, says that given the fierce rivalry between Zimbabwe's political parties, there will - inevitably - be speculation about the cause of this crash.

So far, though, MDC officials have said nothing to suggest that there may have been foul play, our correspondent says.

The crash came just two days after Mr Tsvangirai delivered his maiden speech to parliament after being sworn in as prime minister in Zimbabwe's power-sharing government.

He and his Susan, 50, who married in 1978, had six children.

Senior MDC official Eddie Cross paid tribute to Mrs Tsvangirai, saying: "I think Susan's loss is going to be a huge blow for Morgan. They were a very close family and had a fantastic relationship. She was an amazing woman."

A look at the important role Susan Tsvangirai played in her husband's life

The BBC's Andrew Harding, in Johannesburg, says that Mrs Tsvangirai was very discreet and stayed out of the limelight, but was a very important part of her husband's life.

She was a great source of strength to her husband when in the past he was charged with treason and assaulted for his opposition to Mr Mugabe, and sat through all his treason trial, our correspondent says.

She also made a point of visiting MDC members who were jailed while the party was in opposition, he adds.

Her death comes at a very challenging time for the fledgling power-sharing government, our correspondent says, and will only make matters more complicated.

Mr Tsvangirai still relied on his own security teams and used his own convoys when he travelled, he adds, in a sign that he was not entirely comfortable with the security provided by the new government.

The British foreign office and US state department sent their condolences to Mr Tsvangirai.