Today in Africa — November 14, 2025: UN Launches El Fasher Atrocity Probe, South Africa Hosts Unexpected Palestinian Arrivals, Nigeria-DRC Set for High-Stakes FIFA World Cup Playoff

Every day, OkayAfrica shares a roundup of news we’re following but haven’t published as full articles. These short updates cover what’s happening on the continent — in culture, politics, and beyond. For more on stories like these, be sure to check out our News page, with stories from across the regions.

UN Orders Probe into El Fasher Atrocities as Thousands Flee and Go Missing

The UN Human Rights Council has approved an independent fact-finding mission to investigate reported mass killings, rape, and other abuses in Sudan’s El Fasher, which fell to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on October 26 after an 18-month siege. The resolution passed without a vote, signaling broad support for documenting violations and identifying those responsible. UN human rights chief Volker Turk urged action, warning of “naked cruelty” and rising violence in Kordofan. Sudan’s ambassador criticized the text for avoiding an examination of alleged foreign support to the RSF, while the UAE strongly denied accusations that it is supplying weapons to either side.

The UN refugee agency says nearly 100,000 people have fled El Fasher since the takeover, but only about 10,000 have reached arrival hubs, leaving tens of thousands unaccounted for. Escapees describe civilians being shot in the streets, attacked by drones, and women foraging for wild leaves in famine-level conditions. Many people are stranded along dangerous routes to avoid armed checkpoints, and some have traveled up to 1,000 kilometers seeking safety. The UN warns that fighting shifting toward Kordofan could trigger even more displacement.

Humanitarian Group Takes Charge of 130 Palestinians who Arrived in South Africa

South African humanitarian aid organization Gift of the Givers has taken on the responsibility of accommodating most of the 153 Palestinians who arrived in South Africa yesterday, Thursday, November 13, without prior notice. The arriving group landed at the OR Tambo airport in Johannesburg and were initially denied entry into the country, as they “did not have the customary departure stamps in their passports,” South African authorities said. The government has said it will investigate the circumstances of their arrival in South Africa.

Currently, it is unclear how the Palestinians exited Gaza and made their way to Johannesburg, with President Cyril Ramaphosa telling the press that the plane “passed by Nairobi.” The Palestinians were stuck on the plane for ten hours until they were cleared. The Border Management Authority (BMA) said the home affairs ministry “received correspondence from Gift of the Givers, expressing their commitment to accommodate the travellers during their stay.” 23 people in the group have moved on to other destinations. South Africa has been one of the most vocal critics of Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, and Ramaphosa shared that South Africa couldn’t turn back the Palestinians that just arrived.

Nigeria and DR Congo to Face Off in Crucial FIFA World Cup Qualifier Playoff Match

Nigeria and DR Congo are set to play in the final match of the African FIFA World Cup qualifiers playoffs. The winner will play in next year’s inter-confederation playoffs for a chance to be among the final two teams to qualify for the men’s FIFA World Cup. Both teams dramatically won their playoff semis. DR Congo beat Cameroon by a lone goal, with both sides playing sturdy defense for almost all of the game. Congolese defender Chancel Mbemba scored the winning goal in stoppage time to put his team through.

Nigeria’s Super Eagles waited until extra time to unload a barrage of goals against Gabon, after both sides scored one goal each during the initial 90-plus minutes of regulation. Nigerian star striker Victor Oshimen blew a huge chance to put his team ahead close to the end of the game, but he made up for it with the third and final goals of the match, after forward Chidera Ejuke opened the scoring in extra time. Similar to their playoff semi-final matches, the final match will be played on a neutral turf in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday, November 16.

Rights Groups Warn Tunisia Is Escalating Crackdown on Activists and Opposition

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International say Tunisia is seeing its worst decline in civil liberties since President Kais Saied took power, accusing authorities of using arrests, asset freezes, NGO suspensions, and restrictive laws to silence critics. Amnesty says at least six staff from the Tunisian Council for Refugees are being prosecuted solely for helping refugees, while more than a dozen local and international NGOs have had their activities suspended in recent months. Rights groups warn this marks a dramatic reversal from Tunisia’s post–Arab Spring democratic gains, pointing to Saied’s 2021 power grab and the 2022 constitution that cemented broad executive control.

HRW also highlighted the appeal of more than 30 people handed heavy prison sentences in a mass “Conspiracy Case” trial that it says lacked credible evidence and fair process. Several detainees are on hunger strike, including National Salvation Front cofounder Jawhar Ben Mbarek, who received an 18-year sentence, and longtime opposition figure Rached Ghannouchi, now serving multiple prison terms. HRW called the case a “masquerade” and urged Tunisia’s partners to push for an end to what it describes as a growing campaign to crush dissent.

Ghana Moves U.S.-Deported West Africans to Undisclosed Locations, Lawyer Says

A lawyer representing one of 19 West African nationals deported by the U.S. to Ghana says the group has been relocated to undisclosed sites, leaving families and attorneys unable to reach them. Ana Dionne-Lanier told the Associated Press the deportees arrived in Ghana on Nov. 5 and were initially kept in a hotel under protection from being sent to their home countries, where they risk torture or persecution. She said some were later taken by bus to an unknown border area, while others, including her client, were moved under heavy armed guard this week. The transfers come amid growing criticism of the Trump administration’s third-country deportation program, which uses secretive agreements with nations like Ghana, Eswatini, Rwanda, and South Sudan to remove migrants who cannot legally be sent back to their home countries. Ghana’s government has not commented, while a local rights group is suing to block the deal, arguing it violates constitutional and international protections.

Egypt Blocks Activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah From Flying to the UK

British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who was released on a presidential pardon in September after more than a decade behind bars, was stopped by Egyptian authorities from boarding a flight to the UK this week, his family says. Abd el-Fattah had planned to travel with his sister, Sanaa Seif, to attend events in London, including the Magnitsky Human Rights Awards, where he and their mother were honored. Seif told attendees that passport control at Cairo airport refused to let him leave, underscoring ongoing uncertainty around his right to travel despite his release. Abd el-Fattah, jailed for “spreading fake news,” had reunited briefly with his 13-year-old son after leaving prison, while his mother ended a nearly 10-month hunger strike earlier this year that pushed her close to death.

South African President Ready to Hand Over G20 Presidency to “Empty Chair” in U.S. Absence

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says he plans to hand over the presidency of the G20 to an “empty chair,” in the absence of the U.S. at this year’s summit. U.S. President Donald Trump announced that neither he nor any American government official would attend this year’s summit, clinging to his already-debunked allegations of a genocide against the minority white Afrikaner group in South Africa. Following his visit to the White House earlier this year, Ramaphosa seemed a little less genial and had stated earlier this week that Trump’s “boycott politics” won’t work. “I have said in the past, I don’t want to hand over to an empty chair, but the empty chair will be there, (I will) probably symbolically hand over to that empty chair and then talk to President Trump.”

UN Tribunal Says Rwandan Genocide Suspect Too Frail for Transfer to Rwanda

The UN war crimes tribunal has ruled that Félicien Kabuga, a key Rwandan genocide suspect found unfit to stand trial due to dementia, is also too frail to be transferred to Rwanda and must remain in a UN detention unit because no state will accept him. Judges urged European countries to take in the wheelchair-bound nonagenarian, who has spent much of his time in the facility’s hospital wing. Kabuga, arrested in France in 2020 after more than two decades on the run, was one of the last fugitives linked to the 1994 genocide. Prosecutors accuse him of using his radio station, RTLM, to spread hate speech and help arm Hutu militias during the 100-day killing of more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus.

Côte d'Ivoire Boosts Northern Border Security as Refugees Flee Attacks in Mali

Côte d'Ivoire is tightening security along its northern border after seeing “unusual refugee flows” linked to attacks on civilians in southern Mali, where al Qaeda-linked militants have stepped up operations. The National Security Council ordered military leaders to reinforce the area and begin registering new arrivals, saying the surge appears tied to assaults by armed groups as Mali struggles with a growing jihadist insurgency led by Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM). The group has recently advanced in western and southern Mali, raising fears of spillover toward Côte d’Ivoire, even as Mali’s government insists the capital is not at risk. More than a decade of conflict across the Sahel has displaced millions, pushing coastal states like Côte d'Ivoire to ramp up defenses to keep militants at bay.

Senegal Vows to Repay Debt as IMF Talks Stall Ahead of Key S&P Rating

Senegal’s finance ministry has assured investors it will keep paying its debts and continue negotiations with the IMF, even as the country faces a credit rating decision from S&P Global and mounting financial strain. The IMF halted its lending program last year after newly uncovered debts pushed Senegal’s liabilities to more than $11 billion, pushing debt-to-GDP above 130%. In a statement, the ministry said it remains committed to its financing plan and is working to boost revenue and control spending, though the IMF has warned that Senegal’s tax projections carry “significant risk.” The uncertainty has dragged down the country’s international bonds, compounded by political tensions between President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, while other African countries like Mozambique and Gabon face their own debt troubles.