South African president says cartoon defamed him

Johannesburg: South Africa's president is suing over a newspaper cartoon that depicted him preparing to rape a blindfolded woman depicting justice.

Eric van der Berg, a lawyer for the Sunday Times, said Tuesday that notice had arrived at the paper's Johannesburg offices a day earlier.

The cartoon caused a storm when the Times published it in 2008, but President Jacob Zuma had not followed up on threats to sue until now.

Zuma is claiming 4 million rand (about $587,000) for humiliation and degradation, and another 1 million rand ($147,000) for damage to his reputation.

Prosecutors dropped corruption charges Zuma had been facing before he took office in 2009. He also had been acquitted of rape charges in 2006.