The party is meeting to discuss demands to recall Mugabe as party leader and reinstate recently fired Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa.  Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption People sing and celebrate as Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe is sacked 
 
 Zimbabwe's ruling party has sacked Robert Mugabe as its leader, as pressure intensifies for him to step down as president. Mugabe was set to meet Sunday with the army commander in a second round of negotiations on his exit from power after nearly four decades. The ruling party is meeting on demands to recall Mugabe as party leader, while lawmakers to impeach him when Parliament resumes Tuesday. The youth league of Zimbabwe's ruling party says President Robert Mugabe should resign and take a rest as an "elder statesman," while his wife, Grace, should be expelled from the party "forever." His sacking prompted an extraordinary chain of events over the past week: 
 
 Mr Mnangagwa fled the country after his dismissal as Mr Mugabe's deputy two weeks ago 
 
 The army's chief of staff, Gen Constantino Chiwenga, warned last Monday that the military might intervene to stop purges in the party - and was roundly criticised by allies of the Mugabes 
 
 On Wednesday, soldiers seized the headquarters of the national broadcaster 
 
 Mr Mugabe has been mostly under house arrest for several days 
 
 On Saturday, unprecedented mass protests further weakened Mr Mugabe's position 
 
 Speaking ahead of the party meeting, the head of the influential War Veterans Association, Chris Mutsvangwa, threatened to "bring back the crowds and they will do their business" if Mr Mugabe did not step down. The opposition MDC-T party has tried unsuccessfully to impeach Mr Mugabe in the past, but this time the ruling party - which has an overwhelming majority in both houses - is likely to go against him. The party's central committee also warned that impeachment proceedings would begin if Mr Mugabe did not step down as president by noon local time on Monday.
– A Zimbabwe ruling party official confirms that the Central Committee has fired President Robert Mugabe as party leader and replaced him with the recently dismissed Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa. The emergency meeting also has recalled first lady Grace Mugabe as head of the women's league "forever." The meeting continues, reports the AP. Mugabe on Sunday is meeting with the army commander who put him under house arrest in a second round of negotiations on his departure as president after nearly four decades. Pressure is mounting on Mugabe to resign, reports the BBC, which notes that a motorcade has left Mugabe's home. A Zimbabwean ruling party member says there could be prosecutions of members of a party faction close to Grace Mugabe. Lawmaker Emmanuel Fundira also says he thinks it is a "fait accompli" that recently fired Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa will be reinstated and chosen to lead Zimbabwe after Mugabe's expected resignation.