The South African prison services, which had taken the decision to release Jacob Zuma on medical grounds, announced on Wednesday that they were challenging the court's decision to return the former president to bars.
"After carefully reviewing the judgment, Corrections is confident that another court may come to a different conclusion,"
the Department of Corrections (DCS) said in a statement, stating its intent to have the court's decision overturned. Supreme Court of Appeal.
"Cruelty"
Jacob Zuma, 80, finished serving a 15-month prison sentence last month for contempt of court.
He was sentenced in June 2021 for stubbornly refusing to testify before a commission to investigate corruption under his presidency (2009-2018).
His imprisonment the following month had triggered an unprecedented wave of violence and looting, in a tense socio-economic context, killing more than 350 people.
Barely two months later, he was released for health reasons and placed under judicial supervision.
The head of prison services had granted conditional release against the advice of the prison medical committee.
The Supreme Court of Appeal ruled Monday that this early release was against the law and that Jacob Zuma should return to the correctional center of Estcourt (KwaZulu-Natal, south-east).
The Court located in Bloemfontein is the second highest court after the Constitutional Court.
The former head of state for his part denounced the
"cruelty"
of his return to prison.
Jacob Zuma's state of health remains largely opaque.
According to multiple medical reports submitted to the courts, he suffers from problems related to blood pressure, high blood sugar levels as well as severe colon damage.
In recent weeks, he has appeared in public several times, dancing and singing in front of his supporters.