"The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has commenced with pre-deployment processes and procedures in line with a request for assistance,"
South Africa's army has deployed troops in two provinces, including its economic hub of Johannesburg, to help contain mob violence and looting as unrest sparked by the jailing of ex-president Jacob Zuma enters its fourth day.
"The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has commenced with pre-deployment processes and procedures in line with a request for assistance," the military said in a statement.
According to the statement, personnel will "assist law enforcement agencies deployed in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces respectively to quell the unrest that has gripped both provinces in the last few days," it said.
The violence raged as the Constitutional Court was reviewing a landmark decision to jail Zuma for contempt of court. An announcement is expected later.
The country's top court on 29 June slapped Zuma with a 15-month term for snubbing a probe into the corruption that stained his nine years in power.
Zuma began the sentence last Thursday but is seeking to have the ruling set aside.
