Zimbabwean police yesterday charged an executive and a reporter of a Zimbabwean weekly over a story alleging President Robert Mugabe "grabbed" a plane from the national airline for a holiday in Asia, the publication's news editor said.

Vincent Kahiya, news editor of the Zimbabwe Independent, said that general manager Raphael Khumalo and reporter Itai Dzamara had been charged with criminal defamation and were due to appear in court today.

He said the two were held for more than five hours at Harare central police.

Police had earlier charged Kahiya, editor Iden Wetherell and reporter Dumisani Muleya with criminally defaming Mugabe by reporting that he had commandeered a wide-bodied Boeing 767-200 Air Zimbabwe aircraft to "ferry him around the Far East".

They were released Monday, but Kahiya said police on Tuesday summoned Khumalo and Dzamara.

"It was agreed they would report to the police today (Wednesday)," Kahiya said.

"They did in the company of our laywer and were charged under the same law of criminal defamation as us".

Wetherell said the newspaper stood by the story.

The government is denying that Mugabe personally called for the plane. – Sapa-AFP.