(BBC)- South Africa’s former President, Jacob Zuma, is to face prosecution for 18 charges of corruption, the director of public prosecutions has confirmed.
They include more than 700 counts of fraud, racketeering and money laundering. He denies the charges.
Mr Zuma, 75, was forced to resign as president last month by his party, the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
He was facing his ninth no-confidence vote in parliament before he left office.
The charges against Mr Zuma relate to a 30bn rand ($2.5bn; £1.7bn) government arms deal in the late 1990s, before he became president.
Shaun Abrahams, head of the National Prosecuting Authority, said a trial court was the appropriate place for the matter to be decided.
“There are reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution,” he said.
Mr Abrahams said he had dismissed representations made by Mr Zuma asking that the charges be dropped.
The former ANC chief had argued that the charges against him were characterised by misconduct, “irrational behaviour” and media leaks on the part of prosecutors, Mr Abrahams said.
Mr Zuma has always denied claims that he received bribes from bidders in the deal.
Mr Zuma weathered an array of corruption allegations during his nine years in power.
In 2016, a report by South Africa’s anti-corruption watchdog alleged that the billionaire Gupta family had exploited their ties with him to win state contracts.
Both the Guptas and Mr Zuma deny any wrongdoing.
The same year, South Africa’s highest court ruled that Mr Zuma had violated the constitution when he failed to repay government money spent on his private home.
An anti-corruption body found he had spent $23m (£15m) on refurbishments including a swimming pool and an amphitheatre. He has since repaid some of the money.
