Zambia election: several arrested over alleged plot

Zambia's Interior Ministry said security agencies had arrested several suspects accused of plotting to interfere with the electoral system before Thursday's elections.

The ministry said Wednesday that those arrested included three former senior government officials accused of providing technical services aimed at disrupting the electoral system. It did not say how many people were arrested.

A 56-year-old Kenyan national was also taken into custody, the ministry said.

Three other people, including a former provincial minister, were found with more than 7.3 million kwacha, or $388,000, and summoned to assist with the investigation, the ministry said.

Interior Ministry Permanent Secretary Dickson Matembo said investigators had also found sensitive military intelligence information on some electronic devices seized from the trio.

Matembo said a journalist and a former ambassador who had been detained in connection with the probe were later released.

Zambians vote Thursday to elect the president, members of parliament and municipal councillors. President Hakainde Hichilema is seeking a second term in the copper-rich southern African country.