The witnesses said officers in downtown Harare ran into a march of doctors and nurses - some in uniform - who fled the police charge. A few blocks away, police stopped teachers trying to join the same protest and at least six people were taken away in police trucks, according to the witnesses, who declined to give their names for fear of official retribution.

The unions are joining a mass movement to press the government to respond to the worsening crises.

Men in the blue uniforms of paramilitary police armed with rifles were seen positioned atop several high-rise bank headquarters Wednesday.

On Monday, soldiers went on a rampage after they were unable to withdraw wages from banks, which have been short of cash as a result of Zimbabwe's economic meltdown.

Zimbabwe's state newspaper said quoted Defence Minister Sydney Sekeramayi as saying that rogue elements in the country were trying to incite violence against the government.

He said the coincidence of Monday's incident and the call for protests by unions and civil rights organizations "raises a lot of questions" and that any unlawful demonstrations would not be tolerated.

Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions secretary general Wellington Chibebe told The Associated Press that he and at least seven other labour leaders were picked up by security forces and released after several hours Wednesday.

He said they were asked to meet Thursday with police and the central bank governor.

The United Nations said that deaths from the cholera epidemic had risen to 565, with 12,546 people infected. The government had been reporting 473 cholera deaths since August, and a total of 11,700 people infected as of Monday.

The outbreak of the waterborne disease is blamed on collapsing water treatment plants and broken sewage pipes.

Zimbabwe has been paralyzed since disputed elections in March. President Robert Mugabe and the opposition are wrangling over a power- sharing deal.

The Canadian Press, 2008