On Thursday, September 18, 2025, residents of Braeside in Harare awoke to commotion as shouts and chants filled the air. A group of men and women had gathered outside a cottage in the Southern Suburb, demanding the whereabouts of two women, identified by neighbors as tenants of the property.
Witnesses say the group was targeting the women, Diana Katu (38) and Faith Mukonyo (33), who have been accused by locals of being in a same-sex relationship. The crowd, reportedly chanting inflammatory slogans, forced its way into the yard after tenants tried to calm them and explained that the women were not home.
What began as verbal hostility soon escalated into violence. Stones were hurled through windows, shattering the glass and damaging the small cottage. The situation grew more destructive when some members of the group allegedly set fire to the property. Furniture, personal belongings, and household items were consumed by the blaze, leaving the cottage gutted.
The landlord, visibly shaken but also outspoken in his anger, blamed the tenants for what had happened. “I didn’t know the kind of lifestyle these two lived,” he said. “If I had known, they would never have moved into my house. They should be found and locked up because they are to blame for this fire.”
Neighbors who witnessed the attack say the women were not present at the time of the incident. “We just know that they had travelled,” one tenant remarked. Their current whereabouts remain unknown.
The incident comes amid a tense climate in Zimbabwe, following recent remarks by the Vice President condemning homosexuality and warning against what he described as “foreign promotion of immoral values” through scholarships and aid programs. These statements were echoed on the international stage after the United States government announced the withdrawal of LGBTIQ-related funding from Zimbabwe.
The Braeside attack has raised concerns about rising hostility against minority groups and the growing danger of mob justice in urban communities. Law enforcement has not yet issued a statement on the matter, and it remains unclear whether any arrests have been made in connection with the arson and destruction of property.
