African political news summarised in English: elections, governments, diplomacy, justice and security across the 54 countries, from the local press. 1,283 articles published.
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Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traoré received Cheickna Amala Diallo, inspector general, and customs officials from the Confederation of Sahel States and Togo in Ouagadougou. The meeting took place on 16 October on the sidelines of the 5th meeting of the directors general of customs of the AES and Togo, L’Indicateur du Renouveau reported.
Source: Bamada.net
In two separate trials in Mauritius, Maneesh Gobin, a former Attorney General, and Lilram Deal, a former deputy commissioner of police, are challenging the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court’s Financial Crimes Division. Judge Luchmyparsad Aujayeb will hear arguments on 20 November; the prosecution opposes the applications, reports Defimedia.
Source: Defimedia
Djibouti’s Foreign Minister Abdoulkader Houssein Omar took part in the 52nd session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s Council of Foreign Ministers in Baghdad on 17 October 2026. He advocated solidarity among its members and the peaceful settlement of conflicts, and met Iraqi President Nizar Amidi to discuss bilateral relations, reports Lanation.
Source: Lanation
The Moroni Assize Court has freed Moustoifa Toihirdine, alias Bapale, after three years and 20 days in detention in a case involving the alleged sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl. At the 15 October hearing, his defence challenged the evidence in the case, according to Comores Infos, while the accused denied the allegations.
Source: Comores Infos
The ANC Women's League is demanding an apology from Gwede Mantashe and disciplinary measures after his remarks, deemed degrading, about sex in exchange for jobs. It says the politician must uphold the party's principles of equality and non-sexism, reports IOL.
Source: IOL
Central African Interior Minister Bienvenu Zokoué says opposition and civil society leaders were preparing actions aimed at destabilising the institutions. In a statement on 18 October, he cited telephone messages and seized documents to justify the arrests on 15 October, reports Corbeaunews Centrafrique.
Source: Corbeaunews Centrafrique
Wilna Venter, a former University of Cape Town employee, is asking Norman Arendse, the university council chair, to recuse himself from decisions concerning her complaint against him. She is also seeking an independent investigation into the alleged attribution to her of a complaint against Vice-Chancellor Mosa Moshabela, IOL reports.
Source: IOL
Ethiopia repatriated 1,447 of its nationals from Saudi Arabia in one week, including 1,139 men, 261 women and 47 minors, according to Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The operation is part of the government’s efforts to bring home citizens facing difficult conditions, Fanamc reports.
Source: Fanamc
A standoff involving Peter Fana Magosi, head of Botswana's intelligence service, has prompted a security deployment. The episode comes after his term expired and ahead of a handover of duties, reports the Sunday Standard.
Source: Sunday Standard
Interpol president, Inspector General Lucas Philippe, travelled to Cameroon for a visit focused on police cooperation, reports Actu Cameroun. The trip is taking place in Yaoundé this week, but the reported details provide no information on the discussions or decisions taken.
Source: Actu Cameroun
Malawi’s courts have ordered the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority to pay 691.7 million kwacha to its former deputy director of finance, Elvin Mwapasa, for unfair dismissal and severance. In a separate case, the labour court also found that 16 other employees had been unfairly dismissed, Mwnation reports.
Source: Mwnation
Peter Fana Magosi, former director general of Botswana’s intelligence services, reportedly handed over his service pistol and a vehicle during a particularly brief handover. The transfer of only these items has raised questions about the transition at the head of the institution, Weekendpost reports.
Source: Weekendpost
AfriForum is asking for its head of private prosecutions, Gerrie Nel, to be allowed to cross-examine former South African president Thabo Mbeki before the Khampepe Commission. The commission is investigating alleged political interference in prosecutions related to apartheid crimes; Mbeki is due to appear on Monday and Tuesday, Sowetan reports.
Source: Sowetan
The Kenyan government is launching a mandatory physical verification of public servants as part of an investigation into suspected payroll fraud estimated at 6.2 billion Kenyan shillings. The Ministry of Education began the headcount on 19 October, while investigators flagged 84 human resources officials and payroll irregularities, Tuko reports.
Source: Tuko
Police in Somalia’s Banaadir region deny that their officers entered the premises of operator Hormuud in Mogadishu to conduct inspections. In a statement, they describe the social media posts as false and warn their authors that they could face legal action, Caasimada Online reports.
Source: Caasimada Online
The Algiers criminal court sentenced two men to death for importing and trafficking 144 kg of synthetic drugs, equivalent to 235,000 ecstasy tablets, according to the official APS news agency. Issued on 18 October under Algeria’s July 2025 law on narcotics, the sentences are the second death sentences linked to drug trafficking since the law came into force.
Source: TSA
After looting and clashes during protests against the cost of living, Emmanuel Macron acknowledged failures in anticipating the violence and called for new policing methods. Interior minister Laurent Nuñez offered his resignation, which the president refused, according to AFP.
Source: L’essentiel
Volta North Regional Police arrested Saviour Dzadze, 31, after alleged death threats and the discovery of three firearms, ammunition and substances suspected to be cannabis. He was arrested on 14 October at Kpando Circuit Court in Ghana, following a complaint filed on 8 October, police said, according to the Ghanaian Times.
Source: Ghanaiantimes
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