South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma has arrived in a high court in KwaZulu-Natal province for a preliminary session in a long-delayed corruption trial related to a controversial arms deal in the late 1990s.
The multi-billion dollar deal was made between the South African government and French defence company, Thales.
In a statement released in 2018, the company said that it had “no knowledge of any transgressions having been committed by any of its employees” and it has a “zero-tolerance policy on corruption”.
Mr Zuma denies wrongdoing.
Tuesday’s hearing is mainly for pre-trial proceedings, meaning parties are expected to discuss logistical issues ahead of the start of the actual trial.
South African broadcaster eNCA has tweeted a video of Mr Zuma’s arrival at the Pietermaritzburg High Court:
BBC
