Zimbabwean self-proclaimed prophet Uebert Angel has been linked to an alleged £2 600 (approximately R57 600) payment for a staged demonstration supporting president Emmerson Mnangagwa’s campaign to have Western sanctions lifted, according to a new Al Jazeera investigation.
The documentary, Contract Killers and the Far Right, examines connections between British political activists and Allan Nesbitt, a convicted criminal whom the broadcaster links to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), a proscribed terrorist organisation in the United Kingdom.
The investigation revisits events surrounding the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021, when Mnangagwa’s government was pursuing improved relations with Western countries.
The £2 600 fake rally
According to Al Jazeera, Turning Point UK chief executive Jack Ross arranged a demonstration intended to create the impression of grassroots British support for lifting sanctions against Zimbabwe.
Undercover footage reportedly shows Ross agreeing to pay Nesbitt thousands of pounds to organise the event.
The documentary links Angel to the £2 600 used for the operation, although the allegations should not be interpreted as proof that he personally handed over the money.
The demonstration allegedly involved participants recruited to create an appearance of public support for Zimbabwe’s campaign.
Angel attended the event while serving as Zimbabwe’s ambassador-at-large and special presidential envoy to Europe and the Americas, a position to which Mnangagwa appointed him in March 2021.
The investigation also examines allegations that Ross claimed Nesbitt and his associates could arrange violent attacks for money.
Nesbitt allegedly offered to arrange the killing of a fictitious business rival during a secretly recorded meeting with Al Jazeera’s undercover reporter.
Ross has denied the investigation’s findings, saying his statements to the undercover journalist were not intended seriously.
Al Jazeera said other parties featured in the investigation did not respond to its requests for comment.
Angel’s previous Al Jazeera controversy
The latest investigation renews scrutiny of Angel, who featured prominently in the broadcaster’s 2023 Gold Mafia series.
The four-part investigation examined alleged gold smuggling and money laundering involving individuals connected to Zimbabwe’s gold trade.
Secretly recorded footage showed Angel discussing a proposed arrangement through which large amounts of unaccounted cash could allegedly be brought into Zimbabwe under diplomatic cover and exchanged for gold.
Angel subsequently denied wrongdoing, with his representatives arguing that he had deliberately engaged with people he suspected were criminals as part of an intelligence operation.
The latest documentary raises further questions about the activities associated with Angel’s diplomatic role and Zimbabwe’s efforts to improve its international standing.
However, the allegations presented in the investigation remain distinct from any finding of criminal liability against Angel.