The daughter of former South African president Jacob Zuma has resigned from parliament amid claims that she lured 17 men to fight for Russia in Ukraine.
Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla was a politician in the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) opposition party, which is led by her father.
MK officials said on Friday that she had resigned voluntarily.
Her departure from the National Assembly and all her other public roles was effective immediately, they said.
MK party national organiser Nathi Nhleko said that reporters MK was not involved in luring the men to Russia and that Ms Zuma-Sambudla’s resignation was not an admission of guilt.
However, he added that MK would help to support the men’s families.
“The national officials have accepted comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla’s decision to resign and support her efforts to ensure that these young South Africans are brought back safely to their families,” he said.
Ms Zuma-Sambudla was present at the press conference but did not speak, and has not publicly responded to the allegations, which came from her half-sister, Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma-Mncube.
The South African government said this month that 17 of its citizens were stuck in Ukraine’s Donbas region after being tricked into fighting for mercenary forces under the pretext of lucrative employment contracts.
It said it was working to bring them home, as well as investigating how they got there.
On Sunday, police said they would investigate Ms Zuma-Sambudla after her half-sister made a formal request for the probe into her and two other people, accusing them of being involved.
In an affidavit, Ms Zuma-Mncube claimed that Ms Zuma-Sambudla, alongside two unnamed individuals, misled the men by promising them security training in Russia, only for them to become embroiled in the conflict without their consent.
The identities of the two other alleged accomplices remain undisclosed.
More than 1,400 citizens from three dozen African countries are fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, Kyiv’s foreign minister said this month, urging countries to warn their citizens about recruitment.
