Overview
- Zuma-Sambudla faces one count of incitement to commit terrorism and two counts of incitement to commit public violence under POCDATARA, with proceedings running in the Durban High Court through November 21.
- Prosecutors told the court investigators uncovered about 164 WhatsApp groups used to direct the July 2021 unrest, outlining eight key groups that fed instructions to local participants.
- Hawks Major-General Gopal Govender testified as the first state witness, and senior prosecutor Yuri Gangai said the case centers on the power of words by influential figures on social media.
- Defense counsel Dali Mpofu noted the accused was not a member of the cited WhatsApp groups and argued her posts were reactive commentary, while the Jacob G. Zuma Foundation called the charges political persecution.
- The case follows riots that left more than 350 people dead and caused damage measured in the billions of rand, and it is widely described as South Africa’s first terrorism-related prosecution built primarily on social media content.