South Africa has formally asked the United Arab Emirates to extradite two brothers from the Gupta family accused of involvement in corruption deals in the country's industrial sector.
Two businessmen, Atul and Rajesh Gupta, were arrested in June in Dubai and are wanted on charges of fraud and money laundering.
The arrest warrant mentions in particular a controversial public contract worth 1.5 million euros, linked to an economic feasibility study related to agriculture.
This is a small charge compared to the size of the charges against the family.
The brothers are also accused of widespread looting of the institutions of the most industrially advanced African state, with the complicity of former President Jacob Zuma.
"We can confirm that the extradition request has been duly submitted to the central authority of the UAE today," South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola told a news conference on Monday.
This request constitutes the first stage of a mechanism that could last for years, according to experts.
The third brother, Ajay, is not involved in this case but is mentioned in another fraud and corruption case.
The three brothers, of Indian origin, are accused of controlling the state, taking advantage of a long-standing friendship with Jacob Zuma, who paid him bribes in his two states (2009-2018).
They went so far as to systematically pillage state coffers and plunder public companies, extending their grip to the point of influencing government appointments.
In 2018, an independent commission was tasked with investigating state corruption, the African National Congress pushed Zuma to resign, and the Gupta brothers disappeared before they were found in Dubai.