Zimbabwe’s defence minister, Oppah Muchinguri has stated that God punished the west, especially America and Europe with the coronavirus disease, for sanctioning Zimbabwe.

Speaking at a rally in the northern town of Chinhoyi over the weekend, Muchinguri described the virus as a “punishment” to the US and Europe for imposing sanctions on Zimbabwe since the early 2000s over alleged human rights abuses.

She said: “Coronavirus is the work of God punishing countries who imposed sanctions on us. They are now staying indoors. Their economies are screaming just like they did to our economy.”

Muchinguri added that COVID-19 would teach US President Donald Trump that “he is not God”.

“They must feel the effects of coronavirus and understand our pain,” she added.

The United States and the European Union imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe’s high ranking officials during the regime of late ex-president Robert Mugabe.