Today in Africa — October 2, 2026: Ethiopia-Eritrea Rift Raises Regional War Fears, EU Suspends Aid to Sierra Leone

Leijdekkers, one of Europe's most wanted fugitives, has drawn international attention since January 2025, when Reuters reported he had been living in Sierra Leone, with sources saying he arrived as early as 2023.

Van Weel estimates Leijdekkers earns "hundreds of millions of euros per month," warning that such wealth could "naturally corrupt" a smaller economy.

Dutch police allege, based on intercepted communications, that Leijdekkers may have laundered tens of millions of euros and hundreds of kilograms of gold tied to the cocaine trade, though Reuters hasn't independently verified the claim.

Sierra Leone's Information Minister Chernor Bah says the European Commission told the government in July that the 2026 payment delay was due to timing issues, proposing to shift disbursements to 2027 and 2028 instead.

Egypt and Ethiopia have also traded diplomatic expulsions, with Cairo calling Addis Ababa's move "regrettable and unjustified," amid long-standing tension over Ethiopia's Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and its effect on Egypt's water security.

Explosions were reported at Ethiopia's Ministry of Defense in Addis Ababa early on Thursday, with a diplomatic source citing small drones as the likely cause — if confirmed, the first known drone attack by opposition forces on the capital.

SOAS University professor Laura Hammond says Eritrea's support for the TPLF and the broader "Alliance for Survival" shows the regional spillover is "already playing out," with risks of Eritrea's direct involvement growing the longer the fighting continues.

TPLF chairperson Debretsion Gebremichael says federal forces have occupied parts of Tigray but vowed a counterattack, saying, "We should ensure that Tigray is their graveyard, not their playground."

The African Union Commission has urged Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Egypt to show "maximum restraint" as tensions mount across the Horn of Africa.

Six new cases emerged in AFC/M23 rebel-held territory in North Kivu's Kayna and Alimbongo health zones, all traced to a single chain of transmission linked to a case from government-held Butembo, just days after the rebel group's only prior active case was discharged.

Thousands of displaced residents fled Ituri's Kigonze camp after soldiers entered searching for weapons, sparking clashes; the camp, once home to about 19,000 people, now sits abandoned, and an Ebola transit center there was burned down.

Health officials say roughly 1,000 Ebola contacts had been living in Kigonze, but only about a fifth have been traced since the camp emptied.

The United Nations refugee agency has confirmed 88 Ebola cases and 56 deaths across Congo's displacement sites, though it says the real toll is likely higher.

The International Organization for Migration says Ebola's fatality rate in displacement camps often exceeds 80%, far above the outbreak's overall average of around 50%.