Southern African leaders urge Zimbabwe to postpone election

MAPUTO (Reuters) - Southern African leaders on Saturday told Zimbabwe to ask the courts for an extension on a July 31 deadline to hold elections, a date that caused high tension between President Robert Mugabe and Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

"What the summit recommended was, in recognizing that there was a need for more time, that the government of Zimbabwe engage the constitutional court to ask for more time beyond the deadline of July 31," Tomaz Salomao, Secretary General of Southern African Development Community, said after a meeting in Maputo.

Tsvangirai has rejected Mugabe's declaration of a July 31 election, accusing his rival of breaching the constitution and creating a political crisis.

(Reporting by Marina Lopes; writing by Olivia Kumwenda; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

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