South Africa’s former President Jacob Zuma is in Russia Moscow for “health reasons”, his foundation has said.
“He will be returning to [South Africa] once his doctors have completed their treatment”, a statement from the Jacob G Zuma foundation continued.
The news comes the day after Zuma lost a case at the Constitutional Court where he tried to overturn a ruling that he must return to prison.
The former president left for Russia last week on a commercial flight.
On Thursday the Constitutional Court ruled that he was granted medical parole unlawfully.
Zuma had been given parole by the former head of the prison service, Arthur Fraser, who is regarded as an ally of the former president.
He was released in September 2021 after serving less than eight weeks of a 15-month jail sentence.
Zuma had been convicted of contempt, after refusing to co-operate with anti-corruption enquiry during his term in office.
The prisons department has said it is studying the constitutional court’s judgement and will comment after seeking legal advice.
The main opposition Democratic Alliance has welcomed the court’s ruling saying that it confirms that Zuma “belongs in jail”.