# Much-anticipated hearings on 1980s massacres by elite Zimbabwean soldiers failed to start on schedule amid reports of logistical problems and threats of a court challenge. Tens of thousands of people were killed over several years in the so-called Gukurahundi massacre under former leader Robert Mugabe. Starting in 1983, Mugabe deployed an elite North Korean-trained army unit to crack down on a revolt in western Matabeleland. Critics say the soldiers targeted dissidents loyal to Mugabe’s rival, fellow revolutionary and nationalist leader Joshua Nkomo. Most of the victims belonged to the minority Ndebele tribe.
Hearings on Mugabe massacres in 1980s fails to start in Zimbabwe