Soldiers and police cleared the streets of central Harare on Thursday as the Zimbabwean authorities came under mounting pressure to release results of presidential elections after a deadly crackdown on protesters.

Landmark elections — the first since autocrat Robert Mugabe was ousted last year — turned bloody on Wednesday when troops opened fire on demonstrations against alleged electoral fraud, leaving three dead and prompting an international outcry.

The government accused the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition party of inciting the unrest and vowed to enforce a security clampdown.