African political news summarised in English: elections, governments, diplomacy, justice and security across the 54 countries, from the local press. 1,030 articles published.
Updated around the clock from 400+ African and international news outlets in 54 countries. Every article names its source. Our method
South Sudanese community leader Mawien Mathiang Gor accuses former Vice-President Benjamin Bol Mel of preparing to overthrow Salva Kiir and says nine members of the Awan community are detained. The accusations, made in Juba during a ceremony, could revive tensions ahead of December’s elections, according to Radio Tamazuj.
Source: Radio Tamazuj
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa asked Fikile Mbalula, secretary-general of the African National Congress (ANC), to rest after he felt unwell during a press briefing in Johannesburg. Mbalula will resume his duties when he and his doctors consider him sufficiently recovered, Ramaphosa said.
Source: IOL
Donald Trump signed a decree suspending the implementation of several sanctions, restrictions and tariffs against Russia provided for under the Graham Act. The US law notably targeted Russian hydrocarbon revenues and allowed tariffs of up to 100%, reports La Nouvelle Tribune.
Source: La Nouvelle Tribune
The Sierra Leone Police denied publishing a statement announcing promotions for long-serving police officers and called it fake. In a warning issued on 17 October 2026, it urged officers and the public not to send money or personal data to alleged intermediaries, according to the Sierra Leone Police.
Source: Sierraloaded
Portugal’s Minister of Internal Administration, Luís Neves, is to file a criminal complaint against Ricardo Carrilho, his former secretary-general, over statements deemed slanderous and defamatory. Carrilho disputes his dismissal and accuses the minister of retaliation and illegitimate pressure, according to the Lusa agency.
Source: Jornal Tropical
Guinea has postponed the opening of the registration platform for recruiting new health workers. The Ministry of Territorial Administration and the Civil Service announced the change in a statement, according to Guinéenews.
Source: Guinéenews
Municipal councillors in Adjamé, Ivory Coast, have defended the management of MP and mayor Farikou Soumahoro in response to allegations circulated on social media. They discussed project implementation, the use of municipal resources and the social climate at a meeting held on 16 October, according to L’Infodrome.
Source: L’Infodrome
The new president of Cape Verde’s Movement for Democracy, Paulo Veiga, acknowledges that parties have lost voters’ trust and promises to bring the MpD closer to its grassroots. He partly attributes the party’s decline to losing 39,000 members in 10 years and political disenchantment, in an interview with Expresso das Ilhas.
Source: Expresso das Ilhas
Rwandan President Paul Kagame accredited Jérémie Blin as the new European Union ambassador to Rwanda after receiving his credentials on 16 October. He succeeds Belén Calvo Uyarra, whose term has ended, Rwanda Dispatch reports.
Source: Rwanda Dispatch
Angola officially announced Josefa Sacko’s candidacy for the leadership of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome on 12 October. Backed by the African Union and SADC, her candidacy will be put to the election scheduled for 2027, according to Expansão.
Source: Expansao
São Tomé and Príncipe’s President Carlos Vila Nova requires a viable parliamentary majority before appointing the next government and plans to announce his decision in a month. MLSTP has 24 seats, while ADI can bring together 29 MPs with its allies, according to Jornal Tropical.
Source: Jornal Tropical
Mauritania presented its first periodic report on implementation of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The document was submitted to the African Committee of Experts at its 48th ordinary session, according to the Mauritanian Information Agency.
Source: Kassataya
Gatherings and blockades are planned across France on 17 October to protest against the rising cost of living, a lack of resources in education and the deterioration of public services. Organisers have announced around 1,500 actions, while the scale of the mobilisation remains uncertain, Dakaractu reports.
Source: Dakaractu
King Mohammed VI has appointed Morocco’s new 32-member government, including seven women, led by Prime Minister Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri and including 11 delegated ministers. The announcement follows consultations held after the 23 September legislative elections, according to Dakaractu.
Source: Dakaractu
Egyptian and Sudanese Foreign Ministers Badr Abdelatty and Gibril Ibrahim reaffirmed their historical ties and support for Sudan’s stability. Meeting on 16 October 2026 on the sidelines of the World Bank’s autumn meetings in Thailand, they also discussed Sudan’s political process, according to Egyptian spokesman Nader Zaki.
Source: Egypt Independent
More than 200 people marched in Dakar to demand justice after the death of Astou Pierre, 40, who died on 1 October after being doused with acid by her former partner. The suspect remains at large, while demonstrators marched to the Grand Dakar prefecture, according to Dakaractu.
Source: Dakaractu
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is asking European Union leaders for nearly $80 billion more to fund Ukraine’s defence next year. The request comes amid a new dispute with Donald Trump, against a backdrop of deteriorating relations between Kyiv and Washington, France 24 reports.
Source: France 24
Fouzi Lekjaa, president of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, has been appointed Morocco’s Minister of Economy, Finance and Public Administration. The appointment puts the sports official in charge of a strategic department in the Moroccan government, according to Seneweb.
Source: Seneweb
Looking for older stories? The archive, day by day →