Zuma heads to court amid looting, killings and protests

Protesters say the former South African president is target of a witch-hunt

As a South African court began hearing a challenge by former president Jacob Zuma against his 15-month prison sentence, protests broke out in the streets. Here, a South Africa Police Service (Saps) officer looks on as a group of armed private security officers aims rifles at demonstrators in Jeppestown, Johannesburg..

A van is brought to a stop by officers in Jeppestown..Mr Zuma, 79, was sentenced for defying a Constitutional Court order to give evidence at an inquiry investigating alleged high-level corruption during his nine years in office up to 2018.

Undercover and uniformed Saps members and security officers brace themselves, as violence and looting continued after a weekend of disorder involving pro-Zuma protesters.

Police stand over suspected looters in a shopping centre in Alexandra township, Johannesburg. Those backing Mr Zuma's claim he is the victim of a political witch-hunt orchestrated by allies of his successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.

A crowd watches smoke billowing into the sky alongside a burning barricade in Durban. Mr Ramaphosa says there is no justification for violence and that it is damaging efforts to rebuild the economy.

A looted shop on fire in Alexandra township, Johannesburg. At least six people have been killed and more than 200 arrested in the ensuing violence.

Glass is broken at a KFC restaurant at Naledi shopping complex in Vosloorus, east of Johannesburg.

Police officers arrest people suspected of looting in Katlehong, east of Johannesburg.

People throw stones at police in Katlehong.

Saps members watch rioters looting the Jabulani Mall in Soweto.

Some suspected of rioting and looting in Vosloorus did not get far before being caught by police.

Government intelligence agency NatJoints said additional forces were sent to all the areas in Gauteng (the province including Johannesburg) and KwaZulu-Natal affected by the violent protests.

A business is set on fire in Durban.

More fires in Durban. Mr Zuma's imprisonment marks a significant fall for an important figure in the African National Congress, the liberation movement that became South Africa's ruling party.

Smoke dominates the Johannesburg skyline. Mr Zuma was also jailed by South Africa's pre-1994 white minority rulers for his efforts to bring about legal equality for all citizens.

Another man is arrested as officers attempt to purge the violence on the streets..

A Saps officer fires rubber bullets as he tries to disperse protesters in Jeppestown.

Protesters burn tires in Jeppestown. The corruption inquiry is examining allegations that Mr Zuma allowed three Indian-born businessmen, Atul, Ajay and Rajesh Gupta, to plunder state resources and peddle influence over government policy.

A burnt car at a road block in downtown Johannesburg. Mr Zuma and the Gupta brothers, who fled the country after his departure from office, deny wrongdoing.

Supporters of Mr Zuma march through downtown Johannesburg. Mr Zuma also faces a corruption case relating to a $2 billion arms deal in 1999 when he was deputy president. He denies all charges levelled against him.

South Africa's top court began hearing a challenge by former president Jacob Zuma against a 15-month prison term on Monday as police said six people had been killed and more than 200 arrested in related protests and looting since last week.

Sporadic violence and looting continued on Monday, after a weekend of unrest by pro-Zuma protesters, mainly concentrated in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). Some disturbances spilled into the country's largest city Johannesburg.

Mr Zuma, 79, was sentenced for defying a Constitutional Court order to give evidence at an inquiry investigating alleged high-level corruption during his nine years in office until 2018.

The decision to jail him resulted from legal proceedings seen as a test of post-apartheid South Africa's ability to enforce the rule of law, including against powerful politicians.

In the online hearing, Mr Zuma's counsel asked the court to rescind his jail term, quoting a rule that judgments can be reconsidered if made in the absence of the affected person or containing a patent error.

Legal experts say Mr Zuma's chances of success are slim.

Television channels showed video on Monday of a fire at a mall in Pietermaritzburg, in KZN. The channel said the motorway leading to the city had been closed to prevent further violence.

NatJoints, the government's intelligence agency said additional forces had been sent to all the areas in Gauteng (the province including Johannesburg) and KwaZulu-Natal affected by the violent protests, as the damage to property and looting of stores continued overnight.

It said the bodies of four people were found – at least two of them with gunshot wounds – in Gauteng. Two deaths had occurred in KZN, and all six were being investigated.

Mr Zuma's imprisonment marks a significant fall for an important figure in the African National Congress, the liberation movement that became the ruling party. He was once jailed by South Africa's pre-1994 white minority rulers for his efforts to make all citizens equal before the law.

Mr Zuma's core supporters, echoing his stance, say he is the victim of a political witch-hunt orchestrated by allies of his successor, President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Mr Ramaphosa said on Sunday there was no justification for violence and that it was damaging efforts to rebuild the economy, hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The corruption inquiry that Mr Zuma has refused to co-operate with, is examining allegations that he allowed three Indian-born businessmen, Atul, Ajay and Rajesh Gupta, to plunder state resources and peddle influence over government policy. He and the Gupta brothers, who fled the country after his departure, deny wrongdoing.

Mr Zuma also faces a corruption case relating to a $2 billion arms deal in 1999 when he was deputy president. He denies the charge.