The government gave no reason for the dismissal of Energy Mutodi.

A tweet by Mr Mutodi about the opposition MP, Joana Mamombe, has been deleted.

The deputy minister has also been engaged in a public feud with other Zimbabwean ministers.

Foreign embassies in Harare, including those of the European Union and the United States, have demanded a swift and credible investigation into what they describe as the abduction and torture of the women.

They were treated in hospital after being found at the roadside near the town of Bindura.

Two days earlier they were arrested for taking part in an anti- government protest.