South Africa's ex-leader Zuma to face corruption charges: court

 Zuma

South African former President Jacob Zuma will stand trial on corruption charges relating to a €2.27 billion arms deal after a high court denied him a permanent stay of prosecution on Friday.

Zuma, who was in office from 2009-2018, had sought to have the case permanently dropped in March this year on the grounds that it was politically motivated. He will face 16 charges of fraud, racketeering and money laundering relating to a deal to buy 30 billion rand of European military hardware for South Africa's armed forces in the late 1990s.

But the trial is expected to begin on Tuesday after High Court judge Willie Seriti ruled that Zuma's "application for the permanent stay is dismissed with costs".

(FRANCE 24 with AFP and REUTERS)