Harare, Jan. 19: Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe on Sunday threatened to break off power-sharing talks with the opposition, if the latter's leader Morgan Tsvangirai declined to sign a deal in their next meeting.

The bitter rivals are set to meet today for talks mediated by South African President Kgalema Motlanthe, who hopes to salvage a unity accord, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

Harare  - Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has set a Monday meeting with opposition leaders as the last chance to present concerns before a government is formed, with or without them.

"This is the occasion when it's either they accept or it's a break," said Mugabe, quoted in the state-owned Sunday Mail. "After all, this is an interim agreement. If they (the opposition) have any issues them deem outstanding, they can raise them after they come into the inclusive government."

Harare - Zimbabwe's main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, returned to Zimbabwe on Saturday following more than two months abroad seeking counsel from regional leaders, but says he will not be "bulldozed" into a power-sharing government with Robert Mugabe.

Harare - UNICEF executive director Ann Veneman told journalists in Harare Saturday that Zimbabwe's cholera epidemic is not yet under control and is continuing to spread.

Veneman made her remarks at the end of a three-day visit to Zimbabwe. The disease has so far killed more than 2,200 people.

Veneman said water service and sanitation need to improve if Zimbabwe is to combat the epidemic.

Cholera "is still expanding in some communities. There is clearly an issue with the water and sanitation systems which is a problem when it comes to spreading cholera," she said.

Geneva/Harare - Zimbabwe's cholera epidemic has continued its rapid spread, with the death toll at 2,225 as of Friday, the United Nations said in Geneva.

According to the agency, 42,675 people have been infected with the waterborne disease. On Wednesday, the toll stood at 2,106 dead and 40,448 infected.

The epidemic was being fuelled by a lack of clean drinking water and chronic shortages of food and other essentials in the country, which is facing its worst-ever economic and humanitarian crisis.