South Africa's ruling ANC gives Zuma 48 hours to step down as president

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South African President Jacob Zuma has been given 48 hours to resign by African National Congress (ANC) leaders.

The decision to ask Zuma to step down or face being stripped off his office was taken at a specially convened emergency meeting, late on Monday evening, according to The Guardian.

A meeting of the ANC's national executive committee (NEC) was called after it became clear that nearly five days of talks between Zuma and the deputy president, Cyril Ramaphosa, who took over the leadership of ANC in December, had failed.

Zuma, who had led the ANC since 2007 and has been South Africa's president since 2009, has come under increasing pressure to resign.