THE BUZZ: Zimbabwe’s Mugabe celebrates 91st birthday

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe marked his 91st birthday by speaking for more than an hour on his feet Saturday, delivering a characteristically defiant speech in which he threatened to take over land and animal sanctuaries still in the hands of whites. Mugabe’s robust performance during a lavish party in the resort town of Victoria Falls seemed designed to dispel any speculation that old age was slowing him down following a recent fall at Harare’s main airport. Mugabe’s birthday was on Feb. 21.
Thousands of people packed the grounds of a hotel to praise the man who has led Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, and youth officials who organized the event encouraged Mugabe to rule until he dies. Mugabe won disputed elections in 2013; he would be 94 during the next elections in 2018.