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Former South Africa President Faces Arrest for Trial No-Show

Anita Powell

   JOHANNESBURG - A South African court has issued an arrest warrant for
   former president Jacob Zuma, after his repeated failure to appear for
   his long-stalled corruption trial. The action raises the stakes on a
   trial that has dragged on for years, with Zuma due back in court -- or
   else in police custody -- on May 6.

   As the trial opened Feb. 4, 2020,in the judicial capital of
   Pietermaritzburg, Zuma's lawyer gave the judge a sick note.

   The lawyer also said the health of the former leader was a matter of
   "national security." Zuma resigned under pressure in 2018, in a cloud
   of corruption allegations.

   But Judge Dhaya Pillay expressed skepticism over the authenticity of
   the note, which was missing a doctor's signature.

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