CRS-17 warned outside players not to try to impose regime change, and expressed support for President Mbeki's continued mediation efforts.76 According to local press reports, on July 8, Mbeki declared that there was no legitimate government in Harare, necessitating the creation of a unity government.77 An outbreak of xenophobic violence in South Africa has some, including ANC ally the South African Communist Party, calling for early elections in South Africa.78 Since mid-May 2008, Zimbabweans and other foreign nationals have been targeted by mobs in several South African townships; at least 60 have been killed and over 25,000 have fled their homes. South Africa is home to some three to five million illegal immigrants, most from Zimbabwe, and some South Africans blame them for the country’s high crime and unemployment rates and rising food prices. President Mbeki has condemned the attacks, but the opposition criticizes the government for not addressing tensions earlier. On May 21, Mbeki deployed the army internally for the first time since the end of apartheid to stem the violence. The United Nations. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has joined the United States, Great Britain, and France in calling on the U.N. Security Council to address the Zimbabwe situation. In remarks to the Security Council on April 16, Ban expressed his deep concern with the delayed release of the electoral results, warning, Absent a transparent solution to this impasse, the situation could deteriorate further with serious implications for the people of Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean authorities and the countries of the region have insisted that these matters are for the region to resolve but the international community continues to watch and wait for decisive action. The credibility of the democratic process in Africa could be at stake here. The Secretary-General, who has declared the runoff election illegitimate, is now engaging world leaders to determine how the international community could “help the Zimbabwean people and authorities to resolve this issue.”79 His concern has been echoed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, who called the runoff a "perversion of democracy.”80 President Mbeki chaired the April 16 Security Council meeting, which was originally called by South Africa, as rotating chairman of the Council, to discuss cooperation between the United Nations and the African Union. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad recommended that a U.N.-AU mission visit the country. The only African representative to address the Zimbabwe issue at the meeting was Tanzanian President Kikwete, who praised SADC for working to 76 "South Africa: Finding a Workable Solution to the Crisis," Press Release issued by the ANC on June 27, 2008. 77 "Mbeki Brands Mugabe's Rule Illegitimate," Pretoria News, July 8, 2008. 78 “Anti-Foreigner Violence Escalates in South Africa,” Reuters, May 19, 2008. 79 “U.N. Council and AU to debate Zimbabwe,” Reuters, April 16, 2008. 80 “Elections Won't Be Delayed, Zimbabwe Insists," International Herald Tribune, June 27, 2008.

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