{"id":54577,"date":"2025-11-28T21:52:39","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T02:52:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/s-african-ex-leader-zumas-daughter-quits-parliament-amid-russia-war-claims\/28\/11\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-11-28T21:52:39","modified_gmt":"2025-11-29T02:52:39","slug":"s-african-ex-leader-zumas-daughter-quits-parliament-amid-russia-war-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/s-african-ex-leader-zumas-daughter-quits-parliament-amid-russia-war-claims\/28\/11\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"S African ex-leader Zuma\u2019s daughter quits parliament amid Russia war claims"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n<\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">A daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma has resigned from parliament amid allegations that she lured 17 men to <span>fight as mercenaries in Russia\u2019s war<\/span> against Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s resignation on Friday comes after police said she was under investigation for her alleged role in luring South Africans to Russia. The police announcement came after a group of men aged 20 to 39 ended up on the <span>front lines of the conflict in Ukraine<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Zuma-Sambudla had served as a member of parliament since June 2024 for uMkhonto weSizwe (MK), an opposition party created by her father in 2023 following his expulsion from South Africa\u2019s then-governing African National Congress.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThe national officials have accepted comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s decision to resign and support her efforts to ensure that these young South Africans are brought back safely to their families,\u201d the MK Party\u2019s national chairperson, Nkosinathi Nhleko, told a news conference.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">MK officials said Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s resignation was voluntary and that her departure from the National Assembly and all other public roles was effective immediately.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The MK\u2019s Nhleko also said that the party was not involved in luring the men to Russia and that Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s resignation was not an admission of guilt, but added that MK would help support the families of the men stranded in Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Zuma-Sambudla was present at the news conference but did not speak, and has not publicly responded to the accusations from her half-sister.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, left, the daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma, appears in court on charges of terrorism in Durban, South Africa, on November 11, 2025 [EPA]<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">South Africa\u2019s government said earlier this month that 17 of its citizens were stuck in Ukraine\u2019s Donbas region after being tricked into fighting for mercenary forces under the pretext of lucrative employment contracts.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Then, last weekend, police said they would investigate Zuma-Sambudla after her half-sister made a formal request for the probe into her and two other people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">According to police, an affidavit submitted by Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s half-sister, Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma-Mncube, alleged that Zuma-Sambudla and two other people tricked the South Africans into fighting by promising to provide them with security training in Russia. The identities of the other two people were unclear.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The affidavit alleges the South Africans were handed over to a Russian mercenary group and forced to fight in the conflict. It also says that eight of the 17 men were members of Zuma-Sambudla\u2019s and Zuma-Mncube\u2019s extended family.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">South African presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told Al Jazeera that the government had received \u201cdistress calls\u201d from the group caught up in the Ukraine war, and authorities were \u201cworking ever so quietly\u201d at all levels \u201cto secure their safe return\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cBut also, there is an investigation that is ongoing, that\u2019s looking at how they were recruited, who was involved, and what were they promised?\u201d Magwenya said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">On Thursday, Jordan became the latest country to rebuke Russia for recruiting its citizens to fight, following the killing of two Jordanian nationals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While Jordan did not specifically reference Russia\u2019s war on Ukraine, the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it would \u201ctake all available measures\u201d to end the further recruitment of Jordanians, and called for Moscow to terminate the contracts of its currently enlisted citizens.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Ukraine says Moscow has recruited at least 18,000 foreign fighters from 128 countries, according to figures shared by Ukrainian Brigadier General Dmytro Usov, who also said that almost 3,400 foreigners have died fighting for Russia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Michael Appel, reporting for Al Jazeera from Johannesburg, said Zuma-Sambudla is seen as a divisive political figure in South Africa, and is already facing \u201cserious charges\u201d related to unrest in South Africa in 2021 that led to the deaths of hundreds of people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">She has denied any wrongdoing in that case and has pleaded not guilty to inciting violence through social media posts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/articles\/african-ex-leader-zuma-daughter-020521197.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma has resigned from parliament amid allegations that she lured 17 men to fight<br \/><button class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/s-african-ex-leader-zumas-daughter-quits-parliament-amid-russia-war-claims\/28\/11\/2025\/\">Read More &rsaquo;<\/a><\/button><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":54578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/U2Yb6KTJ4qCntUSZOmI1SQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyMDA7aD04MDA7Y2Y9d2VicA--\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/al_jazeera_289\/96df6ac6f17d7399464a58f03eb0a17a","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54577"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54577"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54577\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}