Britain and the United States urged Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on Monday to allow international monitors to ensure a free and fair election in Zimbabwe.

Referring to what he called Mugabe?s ?increasingly desperate and criminal regime?, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Mugabe should not be allowed to ?steal? the election.

Zimbabwe holds a run-off presidential vote on June 27 and the opposition and rights groups accuse Mugabe?s supporters of a campaign of violence that has killed at least 66 opposition activists. ?In recent weeks, under Robert Mugabe?s increasingly desperate and criminal regime, Zimbabwe has seen 53 killings, 2000 beatings, the displacement of 30,000 people, the arrest and detention of opposition leaders including Morgan Tsvangirai,? Brown told a joint news conference after talks with US President George W. Bush. ?This is wholly unacceptable. Mugabe must not be allowed to steal the election.That is why we call for Zimbabwe to accept a United Nations human rights envoy to visit Zimbabwe now and to accept international monitors from all parts of the world who are available to ensure that this is a free and fair election,? Brown said.

?Obviously emotional?

Bush offered his support to Brown?s call for free elections. ?You are obviously emotional on the subject and I don?t blame you because the people of Zimbabwe have suffered under the Mugabe leadership,? he said. ?We will work with you to ensure these good folks have free and fair elections to the best extent possible, which obviously Mr Mugabe does not want to have,? he said.

Mugabe?s government ordered aid agencies to stop work on June 4, accusing them of working against his ZANU-PF party in March 29 elections.

The ruling party lost its parliamentary majority in that vote and Tsvangirai won the presidential ballot, but without the majority needed to avoid a run-off, official results showed. Tsvangirai has been arrested repeatedly during his campaign and one of his top lieutenants has been arrested and faces treason charges. Mugabe blames his foes for violence.

UN ENVOY TO MEET MUGABE AND TSVANGIRAI

United Nations assistant secretary general for political affairs Haile Menkerios arrived in Zimbabwe on Monday as international outrage grew over the southern African country?s deepening humanitarian crisis and a government crackdown against the opposition.

Menkerios is expected to discuss the humanitarian situation with President Robert Mugabe, two weeks after the veteran leader suspended all work by relief agencies he accused of using aid distribution to campaign for opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai ahead a run-off presidential election later this month ? a charge aid groups deny.

Officials in Harare said they expected Menkerios to also meet Tsvangirai who they said would brief the UN envoy on the political violence that has killed at least 66 members of his opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party and displaced more than 25 000 others and who were in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.

Menkerios? visit to Harare follows a meeting between Mugabe and the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon on the sidelines of the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) summit in Rome about two weeks ago.

However, a UN official, Michelle Montas, told the press last week that Menkerios was not coming to Harare as a special envoy but in his capacity ?as the person in charge of African issues in the Department of Political Affairs (to discuss the humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe).?

Human rights groups say worsening political violence in the southern African country that has destroyed homes, property and livelihoods of victims made the move to stop humanitarian operations even more devastating for the thousands of children and women affected by hunger and displaced by political violence.