The South African government on Monday said authorities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have arrested Rajesh Gupta and Atul Gupta.

The Indian-born brothers are friends of former South Africa President Jacob Zuma.

They are accused in South Africa of using their connections with Zuma to profit financially and influence senior appointments.

The pair deny any wrongdoing.

On Tuesday Dubai police confirmed the brothers had been arrested in connection with money laundering and criminal charges in South Africa.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Dubai police said the arrests were made "after receiving a red notice for the Gupta brothers by Interpol." 

The statement went on to say that authorities were coordinating with South African counterparts regarding extradition of the pair. 

Why were the Guptas arrested in UAE?   

The two countries ratified an extradition treaty in April of last year, which South African President Cyril Ramaphosa hoped would lead to the return of the Guptas.

The Gupta brothers left South Africa after Zuma was ousted in 2018. An inquiry was established in 2018 to examine allegations against Zuma.

Interpol issued a red notice for their arrest in July 2021. The organization said the Gupta brothers were being sought for fraud and money laundering in connection with a 25-million rand ($1.6 million, €1.5 million) contract paid to a Gupta-linked company.

South African opposition welcomes arrests of the Guptas

The centrist Democratic Alliance, which is South Africa's largest opposition party, welcomed the arrests.

"We hope that this is indeed the beginning of arrests and prosecution of those who have — locally and abroad — looted our country for years and are directly responsible for the hardships that millions of South Africans face today," the Democratic Alliance said.

kb, sdi, jsi/rt (Reuters, AFP)